Destined
by Riana Bay
Summary: Lily and James didn't end up together by accident; they were Destined, for a reason. And neither of them know it, but there was a time when they were together before, long ago.This is the story of how they discover their amazing past. -finished-
1. a Prophecy is Heard

**A/N: JK rocks, I suck. I own nothing you recognize, blah blah blah. This is the story of how Lily and James got together, but much more how their destiny pushed them together. Rated PG for now, may be changed later.**

Dark times were coming. Albus Dumbledore could feel it, and the feeling chilled his very bones. A few weeks back, he had witnessed a truly miraculous prophecy through an old friend of his. His good friend and celebrated seer, Rosa McKinley, had gone slack in her seat during tea at an inn where they were discussing her teaching application for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Her voice grew harsh and her eyes became unfocused.

"**_Dark times are approaching. A Dark Lord has been gaining strength, and in the next ten years he will reach his evil height. Our world as we know it will be altered, but alas, there is hope. The two destined ones, of different heritage but same past, will come together like they did once before in a different life. In coming together, they will be able to stop him. They will be powerful beyond knowledge._** **_And they are our only hope."_**

Then she sat up as if nothing had happened and continued on with her interview. Dumbledore found it best not to mention the strange occurrence and quickly excused himself.

A few weeks later, he was sitting in his office when his deputy headmistress Minerva McGonagal entered, cradling something in her hands.

"This just arrived from the Department of Mysteries," she said, handing him a glass orb. "They wanted to know if you could decode it. It has something to do with the connection between the prophecy made 300 years ago and the one made 3 weeks ago."

"Minerva.. The time is approaching." Albus Dumbledore whispered, looking into the glass orb in his hands, his twinkling blue eyes widening in amazement. "The two prophets approach, as does the Dark Lord who will challenge them. I don't understand the prophecy any better then you, but whatever is going to happen, it's happening soon."

"Albus.. Are you certain? Surely we're talking about two very powerful beings, if they are to defeat the so-called approaching dark lord; Maybe they are members of the Order?" she asked, her spectacles slipping down her nose, her face anxious.

"No," the wise man answered, looking amazed at what he saw in his orb. "Children."

Miles away, an owl swooped through the trees surrounding a muggle neighborhood to land on the windowsill of sleeping 11 year old Lily Evans. It nudged the letter through the window, knowing it would be the first thing she saw when she awoke.


	2. Up to Something?

**A/N: to see Lily's "miraculous happenings", check out my one-shot, Who Wants to be Ordinary? I strongly suggest you read it before this to see how Lily was as a child. (The only difference is that Alli is muggle-born in this story.) The idea for this fic came to me in English class, because we were talking about destiny, which, go figure, I don't believe in. However I thought it would make an interesting story. GO REVIEW! )**

**7 Years Later**

Lily Evans was not your average girl. Odd things happened around her, miraculous things. Even her looks were exotic: bright, deep, reflective green eyes and wild red hair. She lived with her mom, who had grown up in Ireland, her 20 yr old brother, Joe, and her 18 yr old sister, Petunia. Her dad had bailed on them when she was 10.

She was 17 and in her seventh year of school at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, a place her mom had at first been reluctant to let her go. Merci Lewis Evans had grown up believing in magic with all her heart (AN- how can you not in Ireland?), but she wasn't sure if Hogwarts was real. Afraid of it being a hoax and breaking her daughters heart, she had arranged a conference with the deputy head-mistress Professor McGonagall, who told her there were other children like her daughter. Her only other condition to Lily attending the school of magic was that she go to a muggle school during the summer, just in case she needed something to fall back on.

Lily spent the summer in their modest two-story house outside of London. She worked at a day-care with her best friend Alli.

Alli Landry had been Lily's best friend from birth. Their mothers had been best friends, and they lived 5 houses away from each other. They did everything together, and could practically read each other's minds. The day Lily got her Hogwarts letter, she was filled with mixed feelings. She was so happy that the magic world existed, but torn because there was no way she could leave Alli. They met each other half-way up the street, both crying and clutching identical letters- They were both witches!

Now in their seventh year, the girls were still inseparable. The only thing they disagreed on? James Potter and the Marauders.

The marauders were a group of boys, four to be exact. They fancied themselves class clowns, real funny guys. Lily fancied them idiots. James had unruly black hair that he constantly messed up to make it look windswept. His hazel eyes and Quidditch body made him look irresistible to most girls, but he drove Lily crazy. He was just so conceited!

Then there was his right-hand man, Sirius Black. Sirius had long but amazingly neat black hair, casually cascading into his eyes, which were a smoky gray. His face was amazingly handsome. Next was Remus Lupin, who's company Lily enjoyed. He was sensitive and caring, yet fun all the same. With sandy hair and happy, light amber eyes, he was usually smiling. Last (**A/N - and least!**)was Peter Pettigrew. He had small, watery black eyes and mousey hair, and followed his friends around like he worshiped them.

Ever since the first time he had seen her, at their sorting in first year, James Potter had been absolutely enchanted by Lily Evans. He had tried to impress her at their first feast by leaning in to kiss her- which received a tart smack in the face. Still, he had never quite forgotten the feel of her lips- so soft! and her scent- so flowery! And Lily had unfortunately never forgotten her anger.

It was Christmastime at Hogwarts, and time for the feast. Lily and Alli always stayed, and this year, to Lily's disgust, the marauders were staying also. By some sick twist of fate, they were the only six students staying this year besides some grumpy Slytherins who kept to themselves.

"Lily," James said, his mouth full of pudding.

"What," she grunted through clenched teeth. She thought she saw her headmaster chuckle, but he hastily coughed into his napkin when she went for a closer look. "Why won't you go out with me?" the main marauder asked for what seemed like the 900th time. "You're the only girl I know who can resist my charm," he said, food still tumbling around in his mouth, visibly mixing with saliva.

She gave him a patronizing look and went back to discussing dress robes with Alli.

"I mean, you're Head Girl, Lils," Alli said. "Couldn't you arrange some kind of dance? I didn't buy these robes for nothing. Maybe talk to Dumbledore?" Alli's gray eyes were twinkling with mischief, and Lily knew she was up to something. There was no way her best friend was pulling for a dance because she bought new dress robes.

The thing with Alli was that she was _always _up to something, which is possibly why she got along famously with the marauders. They were always up to some kind of prank, and Alli thought they were just the most hilarious group of boys ever. Lily, on the other hand, thought they went a bit too far sometimes. Like the time they had hung Frank Longbottom upside down and pantless from the astronomy tower for a good 2 hours? Too Far.

Lately, Lily had the horrid suspicion that Alli was scheming something against her alongside the marauders. Namely a certain Quidditch captain who was hooked on a certain red-headed prefect.

This wouldn't have worried her so much if the group wasn't made of the most reckless people Hogwarts had seen since Salazaar Slytherin himself.


	3. Giving Him a Chance

**A/N: my leg itches.**

On her way back to the common room, Lily heard footsteps and instantly knew who they belonged to.

"Leave me alone, Potter," she said without turning around. "I'm not in the mood."

"How did you know it was me?" James asked with that goofy grin, easily catching up and falling into step with her. His eyes were on her, but she was determinedly looking at the people in the portraits in the hall, who were all watching their transaction with amusement.

Still refusing to look at him, she muttered "Intuition. Now leave me alone, I know you and Alli are up to something."

"And what makes you say that?" Laughter was twinkling in those hazel eyes now, and Lily recognized a challenge. If she said it had something to do with her, she'd be conceited and it would seem that she took the fact that he liked her more seriously than she let on. If she said she had noticed, he'd think she had been watching him, maybe even checking him out.

What came out of her mouth was, "What are you guys going out or something?", which made him stop dead in his tracks. Lily kept walking, still set on not looking at him. She was pretty successful, too, until she felt strong hands grab her shoulders and turn her around, forcing her to look him dead in the eye.

"There is only one girl in this school I have my heart set on going out with. The same girl I've been after for years, trying to impress, trying to look good for. And that girl insists on throwing me off every time. Maybe if she would open her eyes, she'd see the changes I've been making."

Lily was stunned for only a second before then she found her voice. "Changes? What, have your thoughts gone from Quidditch-Girls-Quidditch-Girls to Girls-Girls-Girls?" She turned and stalked off again, almost knocking over poor Professor Flitwick ("Do watch where you're going, Miss Evans!")

"Lily, please." The simple tone of his voice made her stop. It sounded so.. Honest. Vulnerable. Sincere. Un-James. She turned slowly to see that his gaze had moved to the carpet near her feet. Since when was Potter shy?

"When was the last time you saw me with a girl? It's you I want, even when you're yelling at me or throwing text books at my head. Please take me seriously. I'm trying to change, even Dumbledore noticed!" he said, fingering his Head Boy badge. "And it's all for you. You want to know what Alli has up her sleeve? She saw the change in me and asked me what I was up to. She realized I was serious and has been trying to prove it to you ever since." He paused, and Lily realized that Potter was telling the truth. Was she such a monster that she had never noticed!?

Of course she knew he fancied her, but she thought it was simply because she was one of the few girls who refused to give in to him. She thought she was a conquest in his eyes, not taken seriously. As they approached the portrait of the Fat Lady, Lily raked her mind for something to say to him, but he spared her by continuing.

Finally looking up into her eyes, the emerald orbs that captivated him so much, he spoke a question of two words. Two words that started a legacy.

"One date?"

Looking into his eyes, she saw something she'd never seen there before: self-doubt. He'd asked a question without knowing the answer. He had taken a risk, and it was time for her to take one too, to give him a chance.

"One date."


	4. That's What Friends are For

James stumbled up the steps to his dorm with the ghost of a smile on his face. His room was circular and welcoming, filled with four four-poster beds. He shared it with the three other marauders, and he couldn't wait to tell them his news. When he pushed the door open, though, everyone was asleep.

'No matter,' he thought as he pushed back Sirius's hangings and jumped on his best friend.

'Good thing he's wearing pajama pants,' he thought, remembering all too well the time he had jumped on his friend and had the unpleasant surprise of finding him nude.

"HMRPH!" Sirius exhaled loudly as James landed on top of him. "BLOODY HELL, PRONGS YOU PRAT, WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Though it was dark, he could see James's silly, disbelieving grin. "Gerroff me! Are you mad?"

"Padfoot, she said yes!"James muttered before he dissolved into insane hysterical laughter. He grabbed Sirius's pillow right out from under his head and began smacking his friend with it. "SHE... BLOODY... SAID... YES!"

"What _AUG_ are you _HUMRPH_ on _SPurF_ about!?" Sirius sputtered between being hit. He grabbed the pillow back and finally sat up straight, awake now. "Go disturb Remus, for Agrippa's sake."

"Full moon next week,"James stated cheerfully. Don't wanna wake him up. Now did you hear me? LILY EVANS SAID YES!"

If Sirius wasn't awake before, he sure was now. "LILY? Prongs, I thought.. Well, I don't know what I thought you were talking about, but Evans actually said yes?" James nodded enthusiastically.

"I guess I'll take her to Hogsmeade. Well, there really isn't anywhere else to take her, is there? Oh damn, what am I going to talk to her about? She'll never speak to me again if I spend the whole time babbling about Quidditch.. And that's what I talked to all the other girls about.. PADFOOT, HELP ME!"

"Calm down." Sirius swept his dark hair out of his eyes and thought for a moment. "Well, what did you talk to her about tonight that made her say yes?"

"It was quite embarrassing, actually," James said thoughtfully. "I told her a lot of stuff. I told her I've been making all of these changes for her, and that I'm willing to do anything to prove to her how much she means to me, and.." he stopped when he saw the devilish grin on his friend's face. "What?"

"My friend, you learned the way to any fair lady's heart: Flattery."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Meanwhile, Lily was entering her own dorm, which she shared with Alli and three other girls, all of whom were also asleep.

"Als," Lily whispered, leaning over her friend's bed. "Alli..._ Alli_... **ALLI**!" Alli's eyes popped open as she jumped and practically fell off the bed.

"Wassamatter?" she sleepily asked, trying to get her composure back. "Somethin wrong? Whats-" the rest of her question was cut off by a yawn.

"I... told Potter I would go out with him," Lily blurted, sitting at the end of her friends bed, putting her legs under the bottom of the duvet and leaning back comfortably next to Alli, who immediately made room for her. "One date."

"What? Potter? As in, 'He's so conceited and who does he think he is and I can't stand him' Potter? And you? On a date?" Alli frowned; she was still half asleep and this information wasn't penetrating her brain.

"Wake up and smell the mandrake, Als," Lily said giggling. Alli sat up in an identical position to Lily's, only opposite.

"Ok, I'm up. Now e-" yawn "-splain."

"Well, I was quickly patrolling the halls and he came up to me and just.. poured his heart out. Went on and on about how he's been deflating his head and all.. I couldn't say no. And, Als.." her voice dropped to a whisper. "I don't think I wanted to."

An "I told you so!" grin was fighting it's way onto Alli's sleepy face, so Lily quickly continued. "I mean, he was just so honest and.. Vulnerable. Two very un-James qualities. He really has changed, and I like it."

"So," Alli said, "You're going to give him a chance?" Lily nodded. "Do you like him?"

"Maybe."

"Are you sure?" This was the news of the century. Lily, falling for James? Alli was psyched. Finally her stubborn best friend was taking the chance she was born to take.

"Als, I'm not sure if I'm sure of anything anymore."

**A/N: dun dun dunnnn. What is Lily scared of? And why? What made her like this? Who knows. Well, I do, since I'm the author, haha but you'll find out later. Just a cute little chapter asking their friends for advice. I'm home sick today, so I'll get you guys two chapters. Keep reading!**

**-Ria**


	5. A Special Place

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. It was History of Magic. Sirius and Peter were fast asleep while James chewed on his quill and Remus dutifully took notes. Lily looked across the room from her seat beside Alli. Was it just her, or did James look nervous? She took in the way he chewed on his quill and stared out the window at the Quidditch pitch. 'That's it,' she thought. 'He's just thinking about Quidditch; I should have known. And he's probably chewing on a sugar quill. Some things never change.'

But surprisingly, she wasn't bitter towards him. She almost thought he looked cute. Then she turned back to her lessons.

"_...They were persecuted by many, just because of who they were. As it was the late 1600's, Witchcraft was being looked down upon Lyla DuBaer was extremely powerful but muggle-born, and others disapproved. They fell in love despite those who were trying to separate them, and there was said to have been a prophecy made that they would some day save all that is good. A year after their..." _

Professor Binns's voice was like Nyquil to the usually attentive Lily. Eventually she gave up on notes and put her head down.

Across the room, James was thinking about Lily. There was a Hogsmeade trip the next weekend, and as it grew nearer, James grew nearer to losing his breakfast. He thought about the advice Sirius had given him.

'How Ludicrous was that!' he thought. 'I've never had to ask for advice with girls! Ever. What's wrong with me?' That girl did something to him. She made him almost powerless.

'At least I went to the right person for advice,' he thought, bemused, thinking about his girl-magnet of a friend. Sirius definitely had it where the ladies were concerned. He almost laughed thinking about what his other friends would say. Caring Remus would say "Make sure you treat her like a princess. Be polite and act like a gentleman, and maybe you could bring her flowers. I think Lilies would be appropriate." Inexperienced Peter would say "Let her know who's boss. And make her think you're powerful; who isn't attracted to power? Tell her about your heritage, that'll get her going."

But suave Sirius had given him the best advice, and it really proved that when it came to girls, Sirius knew exactly what he was doing.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

That day was nerve-wracking. Every time Lily looked up, she caught James looking at her. His gaze made her nervous, though she didn't know why. That night at dinner she caught him again.

She wasn't listening to Alli at all because her thoughts were louder than the buzz of the Great Hall; However, she did hear it when a soft voice said "Fancy a walk?" in her ear. She didn't need to look up to know who it was, but did anyway, and found herself looking into the hazel pools that had been sneaking glances at her all day. She quietly followed him out of the hall, noticing the head master watching them as they left. She couldn't help but think that Dumbledore's gaze was significant for some reason.

"What's up?" she asked as they started for the big doors leading outside, then mentally kicked herself. 'What's up?' she thought. 'Could I be any more lame?'

"You looked bored," he said with that smile.

'That smile,' Lily thought. 'There's something about it.. He always looks happy. To be with me? It's like he has a secret from the world, or like he knows something nobody else does. Why do I find myself grinning like an idiot whenever I see that smile?'

"Yeah," she replied brilliantly.

"Want to see my favorite place on the grounds? It's nothing big, I just go there from time to time. To think."

"Ok," she replied, still grinning like crazy. 'STOP IT!' she mentally commanded her face, but it only made her smile harder at the very thought that she was going mad. James Potter was driving her mad- That was the secret behind his smile. 'It's probably claimed millions of victims,' she thought. 'Maybe that's what happened to Hitler. James smiled at him and he went insane and disappeared. Oh, stop being such a muggle!' She was so glad that he couldn't read her thoughts that it made her almost giddy.

"It's on the far side of the lake.. Not a long walk, and it's such a beautiful sunset."

'Why am I talking about the sunset?!' James asked himself.

"I bet you take all the girls you want to impress there," Lily said.

"You're the first. The guys don't know about it, not even Sirius. It's been my secret and special place since first year." James led her around the Weeping Willow and towards the lake, where to Lily's surprise, there was a small clearing at the end of the forest. She had never been to this part of the grounds before, and as she looked closer, she gasped.

Over the lake, a rock gently jutted out like a jetty. The stones glistened like colored glass, but Lily somehow knew she wouldn't get cut. Where stone met water was fresh and clear blue, the water forming little waves. Awestruck, Lily absently pulled off her shoes and socks and walked to the edge, sitting sideways and dipping a toe in the water.

James followed her and sat behind her. "I thought you might like it," he said. Lily couldn't even speak, for she had just noticed hot the setting sun made the colorful rocks glow. "When I would get overwhelmed or sad about something, I would just come here. It feels like its some kind of ancient sacred place or something." He stopped talking and shook his head. What was he talking about? "Anyway.. Lily, I wanted to thank you, for, you know... deciding to give me a chance." His smile suddenly grew awkward.

"You know, I probably would have given you a chance sooner, but.." Her eyes, those bright green dazzling eyes, were suddenly sad and filled with tears. "I'm not the most open person. My father left my mom when I was 10, and my mom was crushed. She was so in love with him, she literally didn't know what to do with herself without him. As a child I watched love tear my mother apart, and I vowed to never let anyone in my heart. It probably sounds stupid," she said. James reached out a finger and gently wiped away a single tear.

"Not at all," he murmured. "Go ahead, keep talking. You'll feel better once you say everything you need to."

"I don't know, maybe I'm a fool. It just broke my heart to see my mom like that. The light in her eyes went out."

"Does she have the same eyes as you?" James suddenly asked. There was such light in Lily's eyes, he could never imagine it going out. There was more than light, there was fire. When she was passionate about something, they positively glowed.

"Yes," she said. "But they're dull now. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to fall to pieces on you. I'm such a mess; you bring me to this beautiful place and I turn into an emotional mess. I'm not usually like this," she said, staring at him in wonder. "I don't know why, but I really feel like I can confide in you."

"Always," he said with that gentle smile. Lily mirrored his smile at once. 'Damn him,' she thought. 'That thing really is contagious.'

"You can talk to me about anything," he continued. "And I think you should know that, looking into your eyes, I don't think anything could put that light out. You're so passionate about life, you spread that light on others. Its remarkable." With that, he reached out with two fingers and put them under her chin, gently lifting her face to meet his gaze and put his lips on hers in the most gentle and softest of kisses. His lips spread warmth throughout her, and suddenly her shuddering subsided and she knew she'd be ok.

"So," he said with that same soft smile, "I was wondering if you'd like to come with me to Hogsmeade next weekend. As a date, officially."

Once she could speak again, she whispered "That would be lovely. So, James, tell me about your family. I mean, by now the whole school knows I'm a muggle-born, thanks to those Slytherins. What about you?"

"My parents? My dad's an auror. Top-rank, actually," he said proudly. He looked like such a little boy, excitedly talking about his father. "And my mom works for the ministry, she's part of the Wizengamot. We live in a place called Godric's Hollow." Suddenly he seemed nervous. "Have.. Have you ever heard of Godric's Hollow?" She shook her head and he seemed relieved. "Ok. Well, it's getting kind of late, the sun is completely set. I don't want you to have to walk back in the dark, so I'll walk you up to the castle."

Lily was only too happy to go- She had so much to tell Alli. And she had some thinking to do. Some real hard thinking.

**A/N: OK, there's Lily's secret. (Which really isn't a secret since I told you in chapter uno.. But I didn't tell James, did I?) Now, what's James's secret? Here's the double update like I promised, happy reading and GO REVIEW! **

**-Ria**


	6. Shadow of a Dream

That night, Lily tossed and turned in her sleep. She was having the strangest dream: moonlight, and somebody whispering "I'll be waiting." It was such a familiar voice that she jolted awake and looked over at Alli, expecting her friend to have spoken. To her surprise, the sun was blazing and the dormitory was empty. 'Mmm, Saturday,' she thought. Pulling on some muggle jeans and a sweatshirt, she quickly brushed her hair and teeth and went downstairs to the common room. She made her way to where Alli and the Marauders had taken over a corner of the common room, lounging over chairs and couches, looking over their books. At first she was uncertain whether she should sit next to Alli or James; they were seated on love seats across from each other. She did a teetering dance until she chose the sofa between the two of them. Unfortunately, she sat right between Sirius and Remus.

"So, Miss Evans," Sirius said, smiling. "You slept in awfully late today. Long night? Or just tiring?" He laughed at his own joke, but the only companion to his laughter were Peter's guffaws.

"Sirius, you are insufferable," Remus said tiredly. Then he turned to Lily. "Don't listen to him. Seriously, Sirius is never Serious. If he were, it would surprise me. Seriously." he stopped and blinked at whatever verbal vomit had just erupted from his mouth and shook his head. "Anyway, he's only grumpy because Arisa Galloway is going out with his brother."

"Wait," James said, looking up from the fire, where his gaze had previously landed. "Arisa, as in Sirius's ex-girlfriend Arisa? As in, last week's flavor?" the other boys nodded. "I didn't like her anyway," James continued. "Besides, you have that Ravenclaw girl now.. What's her name?"

"I forget.. Aimee or something." Sirius was barely paying attention, as some girl was trying to catch his eye from across the room. "Excuse me, kids," he said with a grin, and walked away.

Alli spoke up from her place on the floor, where she was begrudgingly doing her Transfiguration homework. "Lils.. What's the incantation for that spell.. Oh dang, what was it.. To transform toads into bits of paper?"

"Ribithoja," Lily said absently, still thinking about her dream.

Sirius walked back over indignantly. "She just wanted to talk about Anna! Which, by the way, is her name. Honestly, _women!_ But I must say, I love when Anna wears her hair in those braids. She looks so innocent, I just want to... _corrupt her_."

"SIRIUS!" Alli hissed.

James watched his friends in amusement. Sirius was laughing, Alli looked perturbed, Remus was frowning slightly while a grin was fighting its way onto his face, and Peter looked like he didn't get the joke. The only still person was Lily, who was frowning at the carpet, lost in thought.

"Is something wrong?" he asked her gently. She looked so confused, though not in the same way as Peter. James doubted she had even heard what Sirius said.

"I was just thinking about this dream I had last night. And I have the most amazing feeling, like a certainty, that I've had it before."

Peter perked up. "You should tell Professor McKinley about it! She totally knows about that stuff." Everyone gave him blank stares. "Well.. She does." he stammered.

"You're so gullible," Sirius said, rolling his eyes. "So, what's the dream about?"

"Well," Lily said, still staring hard at the carpet. "It's dark, and there's this silver moonlight. And you can literally feel energy pulsing through the air, like something big is happening. And someone whispers 'I'll be waiting,' and I wake up. I don't get it, the voice is so familiar, yes so foreign."

Had Lily not been staring at the carpet, she would have seen the significant look passed between James and Sirius. If she looked up, she would have seen the shock on her "one date" almost-boyfriend's face. But she didn't look up, so she missed James give Sirius a quick signal.

"Um.. I have to go see Dumbledore about... curtains," James said suddenly, jumping off the love seat.

"What? Why?" Lily asked. "Did you hear what I said? About the dream? What do you think? James?" He was already out of the portrait hole, so Lily turned to Sirius. "Curtains?"

Sirius flashed her that assuring grin. " Lily, let's go for a short walk."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Curtains?" Lily asked as the exited the portrait hole.

"Yeaahh, Um, the ones in our dorm are full of doxies," Sirius said, "And good 'ol James didn't want to bother the house elves. He's asking Dumbledore for his own supply of the repellant.. Stuff. That's our boy! Anyway, Lily, I wanted to talk to you about James. He really likes you, you know."

Lily blinked. "Er, yeah, I know." she said brilliantly.

"Did James tell you where he lives?" Now Sirius looked anxious.

"Just some place called.. Well I forget. Gilbert's Hollow or something."

"Godric's Hollow," Sirius clarified. "Did he ever tell you why he lives there?" she shook her head. "Well, the Hollow, as it was once simply called, was where none other than Godric Gryffindor himself lived. That's how it got it's name. Anyway, only certain people were allowed to live there; people he could trust. His closest friends and descendants. Do you see where I'm headed with this? No? Ok, well this means that James is.."

"..a descendant of Godric Gryffindor!" Lily finished, putting her hand over her gaping mouth.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Argus Filch, Hogwarts's caretaker, was on his way to the hospital wing when he heard muffled voices coming from behind a tapestry. He knew a secret passage was behind it, but he wasn't aware anyone else knew. He stopped to listen for a moment.

"..are you sure?" a muffled voice asked.

"Yes," a second one replied. "What is it? What's going on, Professor?" The second voice was young and male, and extremely anxious. "You said to come to you if something like this happened, and I think it's time all was explained to me, don't you?"

"In due time," the first voice answered. "As for what it is, it is a memory. A Once Upon a Time, from a real fairy tale. And as legend demands, not all fairy tales have Happily Ever Afters."

Fairy Tales? Happy Ever Afters? What was this, a bedtime story? Filch had no time for this nonsense. He didn't even waste time on busting the students, he simply carried on his way.

**A/N: OK, ok, ok, "What the hell is going on?!" haha you'll find out, I promise. I'm going to introduce some more original characters soon, and fill in the plot more. But when will James tell Lily what's going on? Hmmm, could it be that Hogsmeade date that's approaching? As for the curtains remark.. Haha only James could spit out "curtains", and only Sirius could find an excuse for it. Those boys.... :0) gotta love 'em. **

**-Ria**


	7. Tragic History

Since it was Saturday, the common room was unusually crowded for the rest of the day. When James made his way back into the portrait hole, he walked right past his friends and up the stairs to his dorm. Before anyone could go after him, he was back, his robes bulging suspiciously, clutching a piece of parchment.

"Lily," he said, walking over to where she was reading a book. "Will you come for a walk with me?"

"Yeah, I was hoping to talk to you," she said, standing up.

"Why don't you go get your cloak?" James asked, looking over at Sirius and sending some other kind of signal. "I think we need a drink."

"A drink?" Lily asked. "I don't know what you mean."

"You will," He promised.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Half an hour later, Lily was clutching his hand and walking through a snow-covered Hogsmeade, awestruck. She knew James was aware of a few secret passages, but _this was amazing!_

"What if someone sees us?" she whispered. Turns out that bulge was an invisibility cloak, and the parchment was a map that allowed James to see everyone in the castle, and ways out.

James smiled. "All of the shopkeepers recognize me, I come here quite often with my friends. They don't mind, and they don't tell. Though, I get the impression that Dumbledore knows. I was in talking to him a little while ago, and when I left, he said 'Why don't you take Miss Evans somewhere to talk? I'm sure you can think of a great place. But remember, it closes at 8.' That man is amazing."

"Right," Lily said, smiling cheekily. "When you went to talk to him about.. Curtains."

"Let's go in here, then I'll talk." he said, steering her towards The Three Broomsticks. They went in, greeted the bar owner, Madam Rosmerta ("Hello, Mr. Potter, the usual booth?"), got two butterbeers, and sat down. Then James leaned closer to her and talked in a serious whisper.

"Did Sirius tell you about.. My heritage?" Lily nodded and leaned over the table, interested. "Well, you see why it must be kept a secret, right? The Slytherins already hate me. I think Lucious Malfoy, that 5th year, knows, actually. But Sirius made some deal with his brother Regulus to ensure he wouldn't tell anybody or something like that... anyway, Have you ever heard of Bryant Gryffindor?"

Something poked at the dark corners of Lily's mind. "Yes.. ," she said slowly. "We're...We're learning about him in History of Magic! Wasn't he Godric Gryffindor's son?" James nodded grimly.

"He was. He was murdered, 300 years ago by a descendant Slytherin. Do you see a pattern? Throughout time, Gryffindors and Slytherins have been enemies. He died because he was in love with a great witch; the slytherins wanted to use this witch, Lyla Dubaer, for evil, and then kill her because she was not like them. She was very powerful, but she was in love with Bryant. They were both killed, and a prophecy was made." He paused and took a long drink of his butterbeer.

"It stated that an heir would be born to both powerful wizards. One day their heirs would meet and fight, and one must die at the hand of the other. And Finally, the feud between the two families will end."

Lily's eyes were amazingly wide and bright. "Why are you telling me this?" she whispered.

"There was a powerful connection between Lyla and Bryant: one of true love. It is believed by many that Love, in its purest form, is more powerful than evil. It is believed by some that Love _is_ Evil. Slytherin's children and their followers went to find Lyla and Bryant, who were planning on being married the next night. They threatened to kill them both if they did not use their power for the dark cause, which is ridding the world of muggle-borns. Truthfully, Lyla was a muggle-born, and the slytherins found it disgusting for pure-blooded Bryant to be in love with her. If he was going to love her, he was either going to help them or die; Lyla would die either way. Noble Bryant chose death over living without his love, but first he worked a spell. He made it so that one day, he and his beloved would be together again. They would together make sure that the heir of Slytherin would not succeed. Their love was strong enough to travel through time."

Lily wiped away a tear. "That's so sad," she whispered. "But I still don't know why you're telling me."

James looked at her thoughtfully for a very long minute. His hazel gaze seemed to last forever, yet Lily didn't feel uncomfortable in the slightest. Finally he spoke.

"The very last words Lyla whispered to her fiancé as they were being tortured under the moonlight were '_I'll be waiting_.'"

Lily blinked furiously. "My dream," she murmured. "What are you saying this means? Am I Seeing or something?"

"I don't know," James said regretfully. "Dumbledore wouldn't tell me. I don't know if he _could_ tell me. We couldn't even talk in his office, in case one of the Slytherin-housed past Headmasters on the wall heard and left to tell someone who could cause harm in some way. I now don't know any more than you. I wouldn't have told you, but I thought you should know. There's no way I can lie to you- you heard how lame that 'curtains' comment was."

"Actually," Lily laughed. "Sirius made it quite convincing. Anyway... It looks like we got our Hogsmeade date earlier than we bargained for!"

James grinned and took her hand, gently kissing the top. "I was going to save this for next Friday, but I'll ask now. Would you go out with me? Not on a date, but I mean... Can there be an 'us'?"

'He has those big brown puppy dog eyes,' Lily thought, smiling inwardly. "When you ask me like that, so adorably, How can I say no? Yes." Just because he looked so cute, his cheeks pink from being cold outside and then coming in the warmth, his hair ruffed but not completely disheveled, she leaned forward over the table and kissed him on the nose. James caught her as she pulled away and pulled her into a real kiss.

'Wow,' she thought as they pulled away. 'Smile that makes you go crazy, kiss that makes you go numb. This boy is dangerous. And yet,' she found herself thinking. 'He makes me feel so safe.'

"Let's go back to the castle," James said with a smile. "It's almost 8."

And so they did, hand in hand.

**A/N: Wow, that chapter was explanatory, wasn't it? This story isn't going to be too long, and it'll go quick if I keep writing like I am. Meanwhile, I decided I'm going to start another marauder-era L/J that's normal, without all the past/destiny and stuff. Just their lives in Hogwarts and after. Tehe. I had to get this chapter up since I left off on a cliffhanger, and now that you guys know what's going on, what do you think? Review !!**

**-Ria-**


	8. Sunrises and Fairies

That night was a hard one for Lily. When she got back to her dorm, Alli was waiting up for her with a big cheesy grin on her face.

"So, I look up from my History Of Magic essay to see our very own Miss Evans walking out with a very anxious looking Mr. Potter. And then, you don't come back until 9:00.. **Spill**, Girlfriend." Alli's gray eyes were lit up, and her shoulder-length blond hair seemed to bob in excitement. Lily knew she couldn't tell her what they had talked about. James had made it very clear that this was a big secret; his life could even depend on it.

Lily blinked. "Did you say History of Magic? Hey, Alli, do you have your notes? Can I see them?"

Alli waved her fingers in Lily's face. "Hello? You there? Details! You disappear for four hours with Mr. Quidditch-body and you want to talk about my History of Magic notes?" She suddenly looked stern. "He didn't put a spell on you, did he? Look into my eyes, are you ok?"

Lily laughed. "I'm fine. No, Mr. Quidditch-body did not put a spell on me. I'm just a little tired and overwhelmed."

"Are you going to tell me what happened?"

"He snuck us into Hogsmeade, and we just had a few butterbeers. And we talked. A lot."

"...yeah?" Alli said.

"About... his family. And now we're officially going out," Lily said with a smile to distract her friend.

"AWESOME! It only took you seven years. Hey, are you okay?" Alli frowned as Lily walked over to her bed and sat down, her head in her hands.

"Yeah, I'm just tired or something."

Alli walked over and sat down next to her, wrapping her arms around her friend as Lily started to cry. Maybe Alli didn't know what was exactly wrong; she hadn't heard the tragic story James had told Lily tonight. She didn't understand the prophecy and what it might mean. However, she did understand her best friend. Alli Landry listened and with her heart, a heart that had understood Lily since the day Lily was born. And she knew that her friend just needed to cry. So, pulling Lily all the way into her bed and covering her, she laid next to her with her arms around her and allowed Lily to cry on her until they both fell asleep.

Lily woke up before the sun had even risen. She smiled at Alli sleeping soundly and gently got out of bed. She had fallen asleep in her clothes and now felt rumpled and uncomfortable. She quickly shed her jeans and sweatshirt from her body and climbed into some fuzzy sweat pants and a T-shirt. She went over and looked out the window.

'I just can't stop thinking about what James told me,' she thought. 'How tragic to be in love and getting ready for your marriage, and then to have you life ripped suddenly away from you. The voice in my dreams is so sad." The moonlight made her feel restless, and she decided to go for a walk. Pulling on her big wooly sweater with a hood and pom-pom drawstrings, she walked out the door and through the Common Room, where the fires were burning low, and out of the portrait hole.

The castle looked so strange at night. No lights were on, but the gray light of early morning shone through the windows enough to light her way. The portraits were all sleeping except for one of a kitten, who mewed at her as she went passed. Without thinking about it, she subconsciously knew her destination. She walked straight passed the Great Hall into the Entrance Hall, and then she pushed open the Entrance doors and went right outside.

The sun was visible now, a pink shimmer just visible over the horizon of the great lake. She started to go faster.

When she got to the colored glass jetty James had shown her, she wrapped her coat around her tighter and walked out onto it. This is why she had woken up, she realized. She just had to see the sunrise here, had to see how beautiful it was. As she sat there, a stag came out of the forest. A big stag with big brown eyes and a shining coat. Lily gasped.

"Hello," she whispered as the stag came closer to where she sat. She crawled back to the end of the jetty and stuck out her hand. "Aren't you beautiful?" She didn't even realize tears were bouncing onto the smooth glass rocks; The stag bowed it's head and allowed her to touch its antlers. Then she moved her touch to it's head, where it's coat was surprisingly soft and warm. Then, without warning, it turned and ran back into the forest. Lily smiled serenely and looked back to where a bit more of the sun was visible. Now the sky was like a painter's pallet: Cotton candy pink at the bottom, turning to an angry red, which became a royal purple before turning back into the navy blue night sky at the top.

As more pink shone through, Lily felt a hand on her shoulder. She didn't turn around or even jump. Somehow, she'd known he'd be here.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" she asked, looking at the sky.

But James was staring at her, taking in how the light reflected in her dark, long, wavy red hair. "It sure is," he murmured.

She leaned back on him as they took in the sunrise.

"I keep thinking about what you told me. I hardly got any sleep. It's so sad..." she trailed off as she yawned and fell asleep, right there in James's arms. He smiled and leaned down to kiss the top of her head.

"Beautiful," he whispered. Then he easily lifted her and carried her back to the castle before anybody could wake and ask questions.

When Lily woke up, she was on a couch in the Common Room. She was laying on something that made her feel so safe and happy. Turning her head, she saw that her pillow was James.

"And Sleeping Beauty awakens. Good Morning, Aurora. The three fairies are here, and since Prince James made sure your life isn't in danger, they want to know what you want your third gift to be. Merry-weather suggested coffee." Alli's sarcastic comment was sealed with a grin. She knew Sleeping Beauty was Lily's favorite movie.

"Merry what?" Sirius asked. "Did you just call me, Remus, and Peter fairies?"

Alli laughed. "That sounds like a great idea!" she pulled out her wand, and suddenly the boys were in odd little dresses with pointed hats: Sirius in blue, Remus in green, and Peter in red.

James laughed; Lily jumped. A moment ago he had been asleep!

"Good Morning," she whispered, smiling at him.

"It sure is," he said gleefully, pulling her closer. "I haven't seen Sirius in a dress since his brother showed me the picture of when he went as Marilyn Monroe for Halloween."

Everybody broke up laughing.

"Her dress floated up when she twirled. I was jealous," Sirius grumbled, pulling out a wand and changing the boys back into their normal clothes. "Besides, I was really, really little."

"You were ten!" James laughed. Then he grabbed Lily and leaned down to kiss her, whispering in her ear "Dumbledore called a Heads meeting tonight, in that room off the cafeteria at 7."

"Great," She said. "I've been thinking about having a dance, what do you think?"

His kiss gave her his answer.

**A/N: WOOT, pointless chapter, but I love the way they all interact. And I love Alli and Sirius. Maybe they'll get together. makes a note lol. I'm not sure if I'm going to have them throw a ball yet, it just seems so cliche in the L/J stories. If I do, there's going to be something different about it. Bah. And I added the Sleeping Beauty bit in there because it's one of my favorite movies.. Weee! Tehe**

**-Ria-**


	9. A Little Romance, a Little Secret

**A/N: AHH! I'm so sorry, I hate not updating.. I was pulling my hair out over this chapter! I have so much to write, I just need to organize it into when I'm writing it. Make sense? Blah. I'm dedicating this story to my reviewers, because you guys are pure wonderful. Thanks so much!**

**I just read over the last chapter and found so many mistakes, but I guess that's what I get for writing in such a hurry :0) So here it is, you guys, the next chapter.. Oh, and I know that in the first movie it says James played as a seeker, but JK said he played as a chaser in an interview, and im sticking with that.**

Lily spent her day relaxing, laying in front of the fire with Alli and doing homework. The Common Room wasn't too crowded for a Sunday, and that was fine with them.

James had called for a Quidditch practice; he had been made captain of the Gryffindor team in his fifth year, and played as a Chaser. Sirius was a beater on the team, so he was at practice. Remus was in the library, and Peter had gone somewhere mysteriously.

"Who was the goblin who killed all those house elves?" Alli yawned.

"Um," Lily yawned too. "Murg the Murderous. I have to meet with Dumbledore in a few minutes, so I'm gonna run upstairs and get my sweatshirt, because I'm cold." Alli nodded, still bent over her homework.

When Lily ran to her room, she was distracted by a light 'tap tap tap' on the window. She turned around and gasped; Sitting on the outside sill was a large, beautiful owl. Its feathers, all shades of brown, were breathtaking. She opened the window and took from the owl a small wrapped box with her name in it.

Opening the brown paper, there was a small pink box with a lily carved on it. She saw a piece of paper sticking out of it and discovered it was a note.

"_I know it's late, but it took me a while to finish it. Merry Christmas."_

It was signed with a heart. When she opened the box, she let out a faint gasp. It was a necklace, on a delicate silver chain. The charm was a crescent moon, and it seemed to be made out of stained glass. Looking closer, Lily realized that it had probably come form the rocks on the shore James had shown her. It was so smooth! She grinned and put it on, pleased to see the charm went right over her heart.

She barely took notice of the people saying hello to her on her way to the Great Hall. She opened the door and entered a small room filled with comfy furniture, bookshelves, and a roaring fire. Her gaze fell right on James, whose gaze fell on her necklace. She sat down next to him and whispered "It's beautiful, thank you." before turning her attention to her headmaster.

"I'm glad to see you two are getting along these days. Miss Evans, James mentioned you said something about a ball; It would be a lot of work on your behalf, are you sure you want to do that?"

"Not really," Lily said, now not sure of herself, something that didn't happen often. "It was just an idea I tossed around. I was thinking about having one on Valentine's day, it's on a Saturday this year. And the week before that we could let everyone go to Hogsmeade." She paused and turned to James, who gave her a confident smile.

"Let's see," James said, pulling a calender off a bookshelf next to him. "Today is Sunday, January 10th. That gives us a few weeks, but I think we could arrange it in time." He looked up at Lily and she smiled at the anxious-little-boy expression on his face. "It's an excellent idea, let's do it."

"Sure," she said, smiling. He always made her smile; she was hopeless. Then she turned to Dumbledore, serious. "Professor, I- "

"This is not the place, Lily." His usually twinkling eyes were hard. "Ask no questions, James knows my plan."

She looked from one to the other and dropped the subject. How had Dumbledore known what she was going to ask? He never ceased to amaze her.

The rest of the meeting was tedious and ended very quickly.

"I'll walk you up?" James said, smiling at her. "Or, unless.." His gentle smile suddenly turned into a smirk; He was up to something, this much was obvious.

Lily raised an eyebrow. "Unless?"

"Are you hungry?"

Her stomach growled. "A bit," she said, and he laughed.

"Come with me."

Famous last words.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"I don't believe this," Lily whispered. "James, where the bloody hell are we?" James had dashed to the kitchen, but come back empty handed, and then led her to an odd room that she could have sworn wasn't there a moment before. Inside was a small table set for two, set with a tray of cakes and tea. A silver bucket sat next to the table, with a large bottle of butterbeer on ice in it. Despite the ice, the bottle was smoking. And a little to the left of that was a table set with a buffet like none Lily had ever seen; so many different foods!

She looked over the rest of the room and couldn't stop the childish grin that came on her face. The carpet was a deep red, and long flowing white curtains hung from the windows. Besides that, the room was empty.

"Welcome," he said with a flourish, "To the Room of Requirement. It's a nifty little room Sirius and I found. Though, when Sirius brings his dates here, the room looks quite different. You see, the room holds whatever you need or want it to at the time. I thought we could use a quiet little place to eat. And talk." He was looking at her like he was waiting for her approval. She leaned forward and kissed him softly on the lips. He grabbed her and pulled her closer, and she almost opened her eyes in surprise when she felt his tongue sweep her lips and enter her mouth.

'Woah,' she thought. 'He's never done that before...' He broke off eventually and smiled at her, his cheeks red.

"Hungry?" he asked, sitting down and pouring them both a drink. Lily backed into the wall so she wouldn't fall over. Damn, he made her dizzy.

"You bet," she said with a shaky laugh and sat down. "Wow, pancakes? They're my favorite, but they need... Oh geez, strawberries, there they are! This is amazing. Where did the food come from?" She realized she was carrying on like she hadn't eaten in days, but she didn't care.

"House elves," he said, his mouth full of chicken. "I told them we'd like a small display of our favorite foods.. They're always so happy to help. Though I never got how they knew what our favorite foods were." She stared at him with her mouth gaping open; he had just told her all of that while stuffing his mouth with food.

"You don't go on many dinner dates, do you?" she asked laughing.

He stopped. "Huh?"

"Never mind," she said, grinning to herself. They ate in silence for a moment before she spoke again. "Before I came to the meeting, did Dumbledore say anything about my dreams?"

He put down his fork and stared at the table. "You know, he didn't say anything outright, but I think he did. He actually sand a little song. 'Though it closes at eight, tonight we must meet. You know the way there, so move your feet. At the stroke of ten, cluck like a hen.' He's such an odd old man."

"No," Lily gasped, her eyes positively glowing. "He's a genius. The Three Broomsticks closes at eight, and you know the way. He wants us to meet him at ten... But, cluck like a hen?" she laughed. James joined her, and soon they were hysterical. Lily had a fleeting image of Dumbledore in his purple robes, squatting and clucking like a hen, bobbing his head in the motion.

Finally they settled down, and Lily noticed a clock on the wall. It was a gold sun, and the numbers were engraved on small gold stars. She was staring at it for a minute before she noticed-

"James," she gasped. "It's 9:30!"

"Shit," he muttered, quickly cleaning up. "Follow me." He grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the room and down a staircase, then he pulled aside a tapestry and inside the hidden nook inside. "Stay here," he said breathlessly. "I'll be right back." And with that reassuring grin, he was gone.

Lily just looked down at her hand. He had grabbed her hand, and they had fit so well together. 'What an odd thing to notice,' she realized. 'Here I am, in a hiding place, out of breath and about to break out of the school to run to Hogsmeade for a drink with my mad headmaster, and all I can think about is how my hand in his felt so_ right_.' Then she laughed out loud.

15 minutes later, James still wasn't back. She was about to peer out when suddenly the tapestry moved aside, presumably by nobody. She was about to scream when a hand firmly covered her mouth and James appeared out of nowhere. Oh, that damn cloak.

He led her to a different passage this time. It was hidden behind a mirror. Twenty minutes later, Lily found herself opening a door and looking at an alley in Hogsmeade. She waited for James to stash his map and cloak, and then he joined her, taking her hand and guiding her up the street. A few people were still roaming the streets, shopping, holding hands and smiling, cheeks red from the cold. Lily realized her and James probably looked something like them. She smiled and squeezed his hand. He gave her a curious look, grinned, shook his head, and kept walking.

When they got to the Three Broomsticks, they came face-to-face with a problem; Madam Rosmerta was apparently big on security, because the door was gone. The windows were boarded and the place looked like a ruin. They wouldn't have even known it was the right place if they didn't recognize its surroundings.

"DAMMIT," James muttered, kicking the wall. But Lily was peering closely at a portrait hung on the wall.

"Curious," she whispered. It was a large portrait of Cornelius Fudge, and the Ministry of Magic seal was under him. Then she grinned.

"Bucock," she whispered.

"Come again?" James looked at her like she was insane. Maybe she was, she thought. Then she really became hysterical.

"BOK BOK BUCKOCK!" the portrait disappeared into the wall, and an opening appeared. It kept growing larger and larger, until it was big enough for them to walk through.

"'Cluck like a hen', that would be the key." she said with a wink, and walked right through the opening. James gaped after her, until she stuck her hand back out and pulled him in with her.

Madam Rosmerta was waiting for them at the bar. "Right this way, you're expected."

Lily smiled at her. "I like your security measures," she said.

Rosmerta grinned. "Not too many people recognize what a chicken Fudge is, so I figure it's a safe way to keep them out."She led them to a private parlor, where Dumbledore was merrily sipping hot chocolate. A bit of whipped cream had gotten into his beard, and Lily giggled. He smiled and wiped his face.

"I was worried James wouldn't interpret my song correctly," he said with that knowing smile. "But I was confident that he'd tell you, Lily, and you'd know." Then he laughed and held up his hands. "Please, sit and allow me to tell you what you must be told. We couldn't meet in the school, for I fear there may be some spies amongst us." They sat, Lily leaning on James and James taking her hands in his. "Don't be so nervous," Dumbledore continued. "As you both know by now, that James has connections to Godric Gryffindor. He is actually his great-great-great- grandson." Both James and Lily gasped, and then the old man continued. "Bryant Gryffindor's brother had a daughter, and she married a man named Potter. The Potters have kept their heritage quiet for years, James, and this is why you never knew your actual connections. As Bryant had no children before his death, they knew their heir and our savior would be coming from their line. Few descendants of Slytherin know who their real enemies are, which gives us an advantage. Though I know not what the prophecy made 300 years ago by Bryant himself stated, I know of a different one. One made shortly before your arrival at school." He paused and reached under the table, pulling out a big stone basin. He dipped his wand in it and a shadowy figure appeared. It revolved slowly and began to speak : "**_Dark times are approaching. A Dark Lord has been gaining strength, and in the next ten years he will reach his evil height. Our world as we know it will be altered, but alas, there is hope. The two destined ones, of different heritage but same past, will come together like they did once before in a different life. In coming together, they will be able to stop him. They will be powerful beyond knowledge._** **_And they are our only hope."_**

A powerful silence followed, the air charged with electricity. "But it might not be-"Lily started, but Dumbledore lowered his head.

"It is the two of you. You are the prophets, I'm almost sure of it. I can't tell you how I know, not yet, anyway, but..." he trailed off.

James was staring at the table. "'In coming together', what does that mean?"

Dumbledore offered him a tired smile. "I can only guess, and my guess is that the two of you are more powerful together. You would have to work together in some way, to produce a way to defeat him."

"Do you know who 'he' is?" Lily asked, shaking.

"I am not at liberty to disclose such information, Lily, I'm truly sorry. I have told you all that I can, and I'm sorry, its not much more than you already knew. James, remember what we discussed about the names. You should be getting back to the school, get some sleep." With that, he gave them a twinkling smile, grabbed his basin, and exited the room. When James opened the door to go after him, he was already gone.

They silently exited the pub, nodding to Madam Rosmerta. They walked up the streets in silence, until something small, white, and cold came down to tenderly kiss Lily on the cheek before melting.

"James," she whispered, smiling for what felt like the first time in hours. "It's snowing. Oh, the snow is so beautiful." She held out her arms to catch the snow, but James grabbed them and put them around himself. Then he put his arms around her and began moving; They were slow-dancing in the snow.

She smiled and leaned into him, breathing in his scent. Lily knew she would be ok. Whatever destiny had in store for her, she had James by her side. She was no longer scared, no longer angry or anxious. If she had to fight some powerful being, she'd rather be with him than anyone else in the entire world.

"Um," she said, remembering something their headmaster had said. "What did he mean, remember about the names?" She didn't move from her position, just muttered into his chest. He smiled.

"Names have certain meanings. Dumbledore believes that names should be looked at more closely than just a label. For instance, Bryant means strong. And Lily means pure. Dumbledore is Old English for Bumblebee."

"What does James mean," she whispered into his chest. He hesitated, and she looked up at him; he was blushing! She raised an eyebrow and waited.

"Supplanter." he finally said. She laughed, a look of comprehension dawning on her face. "What?" he said.

"Well," she said. "A supplanter is someone who seizes the place or purpose of another. And you're taking Bryant's place, aren't you? Finishing his work. Supplanting him."

"I never thought of that," he said., kissing the top of her head. "Odd, how names turn out to be so accurate. Old Bumblebee was right."

Lily laughed. "And how is Dumbledore meaning Bumblebee accurate?"

"Because," James said, leading her back into the secret passage that would take them back to school. "Though our mad old headmaster usually 'buzzes along' and does his work, he really has a bit of a sting when it comes to fighting evil."

**Another A/N: Ok, since I made you guys wait so long, you get an extra long chapter, hehe. And it's full of romance, now what? Haha. It took me a while to write that, hope you guys liked it! Tell me what you think ;0)**

**-Ria-**


	10. anyone up for a swim?

Turns out, organizing a ball was a bit harder than they'd predicted. Wednesday night, Professor McGonagall had offered them her classroom to sit and brainstorm ideas, as it would be quieter than the Common Room.

"What kind of flowers did you want on the tables?" Lily asked, shuffling through some papers and brushing her hair out of her eyes.

James was sitting with his head in his hands, staring at her. "Mmm, Lilies." he said lazily.

Lily threw him a look. "Lilies are way too expensive, James."

"But they're absolutely beautiful." he said, still staring.

"Mr. Potter," said a stern voice, startling them. "I offered my classroom to you under the assumption that you'd be getting some work done." Minerva McGonagall sent Lily a sympathetic smile and shook her head. 'Those two!' she thought to herself. 'Had Dumbledore not forewarned me, I'd never believe they would end up together.' Then she said out loud "Lily, Professor Dumbledore asked me to tell you that the band you suggested called and accepted your invitation to play here."

"At least something's gone right," Lily said with a sigh. Then she looked at James, who was still hopelessly staring. Holding out her wand, she muttered "aquratamus". James jumped as water shot out and hit him in the face.

"Professor, did you see that?!" he wiped his face on his sleeve and grinned at his girlfriend, knowing she was about to get busted.

McGonagall was laughing! James stared in wonder; he didn't think she even knew how to laugh!

"Mr. Potter, I didn't see anything at all, what on earth are you talking about? I should getting back to the headmaster. Do try to get some work done, ok? And good luck Miss Evans." She turned on her heal, cape swishing, and exited the classroom, but Lily and James could hear her laughing outside.

"Ok, now, I thought we could get rid of the House Tables and put smaller tables, maybe set for two or four, as it'll be Valentine's day and they'll have dates. Dumbledore said that it was only for Fourth years and above, unless a younger student has a date with a fourth year or above." Lily was all-business. James sighed and twirled a finger around a lock of her hair.

"Well, why don't we have it outside? In a heated tent, of course, but.. Picture this, Lils," he said, suddenly excited. Lily smiled; he had used Alli's nickname for her. And he looked like such an excited little boy. He stood up and held out an arm, as if to gesture at an imaginary tent. "A white silk tent, held closed by powder blue drawstring doily-things. Lit by white candles, millions of them, and inside would be hundreds of small tables with sparkling crystals, and- what?" he asked, suddenly aware of the look on Lily's face.

"Are you sure you're not gay?" she asked, her mouth gaping open.

He laughed. "My mom interior decorates in her free time, for fun," he explained. "She always has her middle-aged friends over, talking about color schemes and things like that. You should hear Sirius, he can go on for hours about the disaster of non-matching furniture."

Lily laughed. She knew Sirius lived with James, she just didn't know why. "I can just picture him arguing with Martha Stewart."

"Martha who?" James asked.

"Never mind," Lily said, kissing his forehead. "Let's just get back to work, that sounds like a great idea."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

The next couple weeks was exhausting; between organizing a ball and the load of work the teachers were giving them, Lily had no free time. Before she knew it, it was the Hogsmeade weekend before the dance. She and James had some shopping to do for the dance, and she also had to pick up some dress robes. Alli wasn't going, as she had too much homework to catch up on, so Lily would be spending the day with James.

As they walked out of the gates, they talked about last minute arrangements.

"_So, you pre-ordered the table cloths, right?"_

"_Did you give the house-elves the menus?" _

"_Dumbledore approved of the song list, right?"_

"_Yes, did the band?"_

"Hey, you two, calm down! If I had to think this much on a Saturday, I'd go mad." Sirius laughed, looking at their frazzled state. "Besides, you guys look like you haven't relaxed in years."

"Sirius," James muttered, "You are mad, and I'd feel bad if you had to think ever, let alone on a Saturday.

"Is there anything we can pick up for you today?" Remus asked sincerely. Sirius elbowed him, but he ignored him. "You guys look like you could use some help." Once again, Sirius elbowed him, harder this time. And once again, Remus ignored him.

"Well..." Lily said uncertainly. "Would you want to pick up some tablecloths for me?"

"Of course," Remus said with a smile. Sirius shook his head and started walking away, but Remus grabbed hisjacket and held him in place. Peter was just staring dumbly at the sky, like he was looking for rain.

"Thankyousomuch," Lily said in one breath, handing Remus a piece of parchment with her order form on it and standing on tip-toe to kiss him on the cheek. "They're at Loose Threads, which is around the corner from the Hog's Head." The marauders minus James left, and James took Lily's hand.

"So, where to?" he asked.

She looked at the list she had made and sighed. "Everywhere."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Two and a half hours later, they collapsed on a bench.

"Well," Lily said, looking through her three bags. "That's the last of the school stuff. Did you want to go to Zonko's or something?"

"Nah, I have nearly everything in there anyway, and Sirius probably bought anything new. Is there anything you needed to do?" He picked up his three bags and straightened his shirt.

"Um, yea.. I need to get some dress robes, but," she blushed slightly, "you don't have to come. I mean, you'll only be bored."

He grinned. "No, not at all, let's go. Where did you have in mind?"

"I don't know, I usually go robe-shopping in Diagon Alley, but I didn't have time this year. Alli suggested this place called Val's. What?" she asked, watching James's face turn to an amused expression.

"Sirius used to date the owner."

"WHAT?"

James laughed. "She's only 19. Anyway, Sirius and Val, which is the owner's name, were together for a couple weeks before Sirius decided he was tired of sneaking out every night. So, he, er, wrote her a letter."

Lily laughed. "Oh, he didn't. Please tell me you're kidding."

James shook his head. "Nope, and she wasn't too happy. So he usually avoids that street, but come on, let's go pay Val a visit."

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

"Well well well. James Potter, imagine you walking into my shop."

Lily stared in wonder at the girl who had just spoken.

By all means, she was beautiful. She had long, straight black hair and purple eyes, heavily clouded by make-up. She was extremely thin, and taller then Lily. Lily took in her outfit: a short black skirt and a tight sea-green sweater, that matched her inch-long nails. She was wearing combat boots and tons of silver jewelry.

"Hello Val," James said pleasantly. "I'm not here to talk about Sirius, I'll say it right away. I'm here to get my girlfriend some dress robes. What do you think?" he asked, looking Lily over. Val stared her up and down too, and Lily felt slightly uncomfortable.

"She's a pretty one," Val said, smiling. "But it'll be hard to match that red hair.. Let's see." She started pulling robes off a rack. Lily just stared with her mouth open; she had never seen dress robes like these! They were all so... fashionable. "Well, honey, walk your pretty little self back into that dressing room and take off your clothes; we have ourselves a project here! A real mission of mercy."

Though somewhat tacky, Val's shop was impressive. Music was playing loudly over the speakers, and the walls were a shiny hot-pink. Lily almost laughed out loud at the look she imagined on her sister's face if Petunia were ever to enter this shop; she'd be mortified! It was obvious that Val owned the shop and made all of her clothes herself. Lily watched her look through some robes.

'She looks so familiar,' Lily thought. 'She probably went to Hogwarts.'

Val made Lily try on various robes and model them for James, who had seated himself on a chair outside the dressing room. He loved every set of dress robes, but Val would frown and shake her head and yank Lily back into the dressing room. Lily felt just like a muggle model.

Frowning and tired, Lily pulled on the very last set in the pile, expecting Val to simply scorn it again. What she wasn't expecting was for Val to gasp and spin her around.

"Lovely," she whispered for the first time that day. "Absolutely perfect."

The dress robes were white silk, with a sheer and sparkling layer of pale blue material over them. They fit Lily perfectly, accenting every curve and making her look amazing. The sleeves were long, but not loose; they fit her arms and the top half of her body tightly, but not too tight. Then the bottom flowed out only slightly, turning into a darker shade of blue as they went down. The top was V-necked, but not too low. Lily looked in the mirror and gasped.

'This was made for me,' she thought in wonder. 'Though they look more like a dress than dress robes, but they're beautiful.'

Meanwhile Val was playing with her hair. "Hmm," she said. "Long and wavy, dark red.. How about we try this." she took her wand and ran it through Lily's hair, and suddenly Lily had a head of long corkscrew curls. Then Val took it and delicately twisted half of it up, leaving some pieces to surround Lily's face. "You have so much hair," she said, smiling and looking like she was having fun. The part of Lily's hair that she had left down went to her waist in shiny curls. The top, which she'd put up, was in a twisted bun. She shook her wand over Lily's head, and glitter fell into her hair. Last, she put her wand around the pieces of hair surrounding Lily's face, and they turned into smaller curls.

"Let's show your boyfriend how you look and see if it doesn't send him running for the bathroom, huh?" Val said with a wicked grin. Lily only nodded.

James looked up from the quidditch magazine he was reading and his mouth fell open. "Wow," he whispered. He slowly stood up and walked towards Lily. "You look... amazing." He was still whispering, and she smiled shyly at the look on his face. He looked as if he had just seen an angel.

"So.. These are it?" Lily asked awkwardly, gesturing to her robes. James nodded. Val grinned.

"Mission accomplished." she purred. "Come on, Lily, let's get you all changed and rung up. Be right back, lover boy."

'Despite Val's trashy manner,' Lily thought, 'there really is something great about her.' She quickly changed back into her muggle jeans and sweatshirt and walked out to see James paying for her robes.

"James!" she said. "I can pay for those, what are you doing?"

He grinned and put up a hand. "Think of them as a gift for you, because seeing you in them is a gift for me." With that, he picked up all of his bags, including the pink one that said "Vals" , waved goodbye to Val, and walked outside, leaving Lily to stare after him.

"Oh, let him pay," Val said, waving a hand. "They were meant for you, really. I only charged him half price, because it makes me happy when my designs fit someone so well. Have fun at the ball, Lily. Oh, and girl? He really likes you.. Don't let him go." She gave Lily a quick hug.

"Thank you!" Lily called on her way out the door. James was sitting on a bench looking at the sky.

"It got really cold out," he said. "I think it'll snow again."

Lily smiled. "Maybe."

They talked about Gryffindor's chances of winning the quidditch cup, a topic Lily would have never dreamed of having. Until she got to know him, she hated it when James talked about Quidditch. Now she was actually interested.

By the time they entered the Hogwarts gates, the sun was setting. Lily shivered and James put his arms around her.

Someone suddenly screamed; the noise had come from beside the lake. Lily and James ran towards it and saw some Slytherins picking on a Ravenclaw first year. Just before Lily and James got there, they threw the first year into the freezing lake.

Lily dove in after him, ignoring the cold and swimming to the bottom, where she found the small boy had passed out. She grabbed him and used her legs to push off from the lake floor, silently giving thanks that he had been thrown into the more shallow area. Her hair coming loose and flowing around her face, she broke through to the surface and gasped for air. By this point, James had used a spell to bind the four Slytherins together, and professors Dumbledore and McGonagall were by the lakeside. Lily pulled herself ashore, muttering "woolevia" at a plant and transfiguring it into a blanket, which she wrapped around the boy, who was waking up.

"Thirty points from Slytherin, and detention to all of you." she said, pointing her finger at the slytherins and pulling herself completely out of the water.

"Oh, now we're scared, Mudblood," laughed Lucius Malfoy.

"With Filch," she continued.

"Look, the Mudblood thinks she's scaring us!" mused a boy she knew as Sirius's brother.

"Cleaning the hospital wing bedpans," Lily went on dangerously.

"She thinks she's so important because she's Head Girl," screeched Bellatrix Black, Sirius's cousin. Those idiots really didn't know when to shut up, did they?

"_Without magic_." Lily finished, eyes narrowed. The slytherins were silent. James laughed.

Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Well, Miss Evans, it looks like you have that taken care of, and it seems young Mr. Lovegood will be ok, so why don't you get him to the hospital wing, Minerva?"

Professor McGonagall was throwing a disgusted look at the slytherins.

"Of course, Albus," she said. "Oh, and excellent transfiguration, Miss Evans," she said with a wink, pulling the first year to his feet and leading him up the castle.

James glared at the slytherins. "You'll all receive word of your detentions," he said, flicking his wand and removing his spell. "Now get lost." They left, throwing Lily and James hateful glares. The only Slytherin in the group of four who hadn't spoken was Severus Snape.

"Lily, I'm impressed," Dumbledore said with his calm smile. "Excellent fast thinking, and great use of magic. I think I'll make it 25 point to Gryffindor. And James, excellent binding spell, another 20 points to Gryffindor. I'll inform Mr. Filch that those students have detention with him. Oh, and are these your bags? You dropped them back there.." He held up their shopping bags; Lily and James nodded.

Lily sneezed, and James noticed she was shivering uncontrollably.

"Hey," James said, wrapping his cloak around her, "Are you feeling ok?" He kissed her forehead and his eyes went wide. "Merlin, Lily, you're burning up! Come on, Let's get you to Madam Pomfrey!" He levitated their bags to the entrance and picked Lily up, walking quickly towards the castle, their old headmaster following them.

"Really, James, I'm fine," Lily said, rolling her eyes. "Put me down, ok? I can walk." But suddenly, Lily's eyes closed and she went limp in his arms. He started running.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXxxxx**

"Fine" turned out to be pneumonia, according to Madam Pomfrey.

"It's a muggle disease, yes," she informed James, who sat by a sleeping Lily, "but we can't use magic to cure it; it would be too dangerous. So she'll have to take this, er, _muggle _medicine," she said, wrinkling her nose at the word muggle, "and use the good old medicine of time. I don't trust it, but it's all I have. You can stay with her tonight, but she probably won't wake up after the medicine I just gave her. And I must insist that you leave tomorrow and go back to classes Monday." She turned and left, going to bed.

James hadn't heard a word she's said. He was staring at Lily, who was pale and breathing heavily. 'It's my fault,' he thought. 'I shouldn't have let her jump in the freezing lake.. But she jumped in _so_ _damn fast_.'

He sighed and pulled back Lily's covers to get into bed with her. He knew that when Madam Pomfrey said he could stay the night she meant in the chair next to Lily's bed, but he didn't care. He wrapped his arms around the sleeping Lily, who was shivering despite her high temperature. And, holding her close, he fell asleep.

**A/N : oh no, Lily's sick! (Don't hate me, I'm going somewhere with that.)**

**Every time I try to separate a time frame with a line, it doesn't work, so now I'm using X's, if you were confused. And I know Martha Stewart wasn't around in the Marauder days, I'm not stupid, but I put her in there anyway because I personally thought comparing her to Sirius was quite comical **

**To My Reviewers: You guys are amazing. Truly. I keep expecting someone to tell me how much they hate me, but you guys are great.**

**Bah, please excuse any typos or errors; I proofread all of my chapters myself, but I'm way too impatient to wait for a BETA to read it. So if there's an obvious mistake, feel free to throw a tomato at me. -ducks the stream of tomatoes-**

**Ok, another chapter up, keep reading, and I'll see you all in chapter 11!**

**-Ria-**

**Another A/N: ok, I've had that chapter done for days, but because was under construction, i couldnt post it. sry**


	11. Belle of the Ball

**Warning: There is enough fluff in this chapter to keep a mattress company in business for the next five years. Don't say I didn't warn you.**

Lily's eyes fluttered but remained closed; 'Where am I?' she thought to herself. The white light behind her eyes was way too bright, and she definitely was not in her bed.

"Mr. Potter, GET OUT!" she heard a frustrated woman's voice shout.

"Aww, C'mon, Poppy, let me stay," she heard a second voice, male this time, plead.

"ITS MADAM POMFREY TO YOU, NOW GET OUT! YOU'VE BEEN HERE ALL WEEK, I PROMISE I'LL LET YOU KNOW WHEN SHE WAKES UP!"

All week? Lily opened her eyes and sat up, frowning at the sight that met her eyes: A very agitated Madam Pomfrey, bending over a clipboard, and James, standing next to the door of the Hospital wing. The Hospital wing? How did she get there?

"Um," she said brilliantly, causing her two feuding companions to turn their attention to her.

"Lily!" James ran over and grabbed her hand in his. "How do you feel? Are you ok? DAMMIT YOU SCARED ME!" but he wasn't mad, he was smiling like it was Christmas.

Madam Pomfrey's reaction was somewhat different as she shuffled over and bent in Lily's face. "Let me listen to your heart, Miss Evans. How is your breathing, does it hurt your lungs?"

"I'm fine," Lily said, then realized that it _was_ slightly hard to breathe. "Why am I here?"

"After you got out of the lake, you passed out," James said, frowning and leaning close to her. "Are you sure you're ok? I was so worried, but.." he trailed off, still frowning and looking at her like he expected her to pass out again.

"Miss Evans," Madam Pomfrey said, sending James a look that said_ 'she's my patient, leave this to me'_,"Were you not feeling well last week?"

"Well, I felt kind of worn out, but I was just doing _so much_. And I didn't have time to relax.. Wait," she said, comprehension dawning on her face. "Last week?"

"It's Friday," James said.

"Lily," Madam Pomfrey continued as if the side conversation hadn't taken place, "You exhausted yourself, and your immune system was down. You were probably infected by some bacteria in the freezing lake, and you caught pneumonia. You'll be fine, but I insist you spend at least three more days here, so I can observe you."

"But, the dance, I have to finish-" She was halfway out of bed when James gently pushed her back in.

"It's all finished," he said. "Alli, Sirius, and Remus got together and organized everything with me. The band, the food, the decorations, all taken care of. Now relax, ok? Everything will go fine."

"I have to go," she said to Madam Pomfrey. "James and I are supposed to open the dance! I-" Once again her words were cut off, but this time by a hacking cough.

"I'm sorry, but I forbid it. Listen to yourself! Do you want to catch your death? Now LAY DOWN and just let me do my job!" she left, muttering something about ungrateful students.

"James, I'm so sorry.." Lily said. "This.. This is just fucking wonderful." She shoved a hand over her mouth. "I did _not_ just say that. I'm sorry. I... I don't feel so well." Tears pooled in the corners of her eyes and she grudgingly wiped them away. "I'm such an idiot, getting sick before the biggest event of my seventh year, making my friends do all the work." James blinked at her.

"Don't be sorry," he said as if she were being ridiculous , sitting on the edge of her bed. "Do you remember what you were doing before you fell in the lake? You were bravely saving that first year, like the Gryffindor that you are. Never apologize again, Lily, because you don't know how wonderful you are." He was sincere, it was written all over his face.

She laughed. " Shut up, I'm not wonderful. I didn't even think before I jumped in the lake. That's the way I live my life, jumping into things without thinking. Its quite stupid, really, because most of the time the consequences come back to kick me. My sister teases me terribly, and I just.. Need to stop." She closed her eyes and lost her sarcastic tone. "I think I'm going back to sleep. Stupid, I've been sleeping for days, huh?" she laughed again.

"Nah, I got to sleep with you. And I will again."

Lily opened her eyes and blinked at him, thoughts of 'what the hell?' running through her head as he climbed into the bed with her and threw his arms around her. Then she realized what he meant and leaned against him.

"And," he continued, "it's not the biggest event of your seventh year. We're the Head students, remember? We can organize another ball if we want. Now get some sleep."

And she did get some sleep, possibly the best sleep of her life, curled up in his arms.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Mm, I love spaghettios, they're so yummy!" _-sluuurrp-_

"Sirius, stop eating her food! She's asleep, not dead!"

"I'm hungry! And besides, it's just getting cold sitting here..."

These are the sounds that Lily woke up to, and she woke up laughing. "You guys," she said, blinking her eyes open. "I missed you so much." James shifted awake next to her and squinted up at their friends; Sirius and Alli were standing next to her bed.

"Bloody hell," he said. "I was having the weirdest dream, and for a moment I thought Sirius was Snape in a dress."

"Sounds like a nightmare," Sirius said, rolling his eyes. Then he flopped down at the bottom of the bed while Alli sat in the chair next to the bed. "So, Lily-darling, how the hell are you?" He put his feet in Alli's lap and leaned back on Lily's legs. Alli gave him a deadly look and he dropped his feet immediately, sitting up straight. James laughed, then hastily turned it into a cough.

Alli leaned in to her friend, brushing Lily's hair away from her face, and said in a gentle voice "Are you feeling better?"

Lily smiled. "I feel fine, just a little tired. And my chest hurts a bit."

Sirius opened his mouth to make a comment, but both James and Alli pushed him, and he fell off the bed with a _thud._ He shrugged and stood up, going to Lily's bedside and starting to eat her spaghettios, which Madam Pomfrey had left out for dinner.

"Have I missed much in class?" Lily asked, sitting up and putting her hands in her lap. James shifted and laid his head in her lap, so she lifted her hands and let her fingers play in his hair. He closed his eyes again.

'He must be so tired,' Lily thought, 'after spending a week here. I wonder if he got any real sleep.'

"Not too much," Alli said. "The teachers are giving us mostly review work, to keep us busy and get us ready for N.E.W.T.s. I guess there really isn't much more for them to teach us, although someone should tell McGonagall that. Hey, is your hair longer?"

Lily felt her hair, which was now down to her waist. "Yeah, when I went to buy my dress robes at Val's, she did something to make my hair longer. I guess I forgot.. I kind of like it, though. It's curlier too, not just wavy."

Sirius gulped and nearly choked on a spaghettio. "Val? Please tell me you're not talking about the Val I'm thinking of.."

"The one and only," James said, grinning. "She's not too happy with you."

"That girl has the temper of a wolf," he said. Then he stopped, as if remembering something. "Lily, Remus sends his best wishes, and he feels terrible that he couldn't come to see you, but he isn't feeling too well." James raised his eyebrows at Sirius and Sirius nodded, but since James's head was under Lily's hand, it went unnoticed.

They spent the rest of the night talking, Alli describing to Lily her dress robes and plans for what to wear. Eventually, James and Sirius left, Sirius going to bed and James going to shower and sleep in his own bed at Lily's insistence.

"Alli," Lily said, suddenly realizing something. "Who are you going to the ball with?"

Alli looked down at her feet. "Well, I didn't have a date until last night, and.. Well, Sirius didn't have a date either, cause he broke up with that girl about a week ago, and he kind of asked me. So we're going together. As friends."

Lily just smiled; over the years, she'd known that Alli had a thing for Sirius, but she also knew that Alli would never admit it in a million years. A week without a girl was really something for Sirius.

'I wonder who he was waiting for,' Lily thought with a grin. She couldn't wait to see what the following day brought.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Boring is the word Lily would use to describe the next day. The entire castle was excitedly getting ready for the ball, and she was sitting in bed, watching the Slytherins cleaning the bed pans and threatening her with taunting words as she ignored them. They called her every name they could think of until James came in, wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. Malfoy, Black, Black, and Snape all left in quite a hurry.

"James, what are you wearing?" Lily asked. "Aren't you going to the ball? You have to open it!"

He sat in the chair next to her bed and pulled a single red rose out from behind his back. "It's the job of the head boy to spend the ball with the head girl, is it not? So Sirius and Alli are opening the dance while I spend the evening with the lovely Miss Evans."

"But.. But.." her words were cut off by a single kiss.

"And I have plans for tonight. First for Lily and James's night of fun, BUBBLES!" and he pulled a small container of bubbles out of a bag Lily hadn't noticed him come in with. He opened them and held the wand up to her lips so she could blow. Purple bubbles in the shapes of stars came out.

"Madam Pomfrey would light me on fire if she saw this..." Lily said, laughing at the bubbles.

"Don't worry, Dumbledore promised he'd keep her in the Great Hall for tonight. And looking at the way Peter dances, she'll have to keep healing his date's bloody feet all night. We're safe."

She laughed again. "You're sure you don't want to go to the dance?"

"Nah, I would rather be with you." He gave her that smile, which immediately reflected on her face, and looked through his bag. "Next up on Lily and James's night of fun..."

James had a whole bunch of fun things planned for them that night. They did puzzles, told jokes, read funny stories, painted seashells that James had found by the lake, drew funny caricatures of the people they knew, and just enjoyed each other's company. Since Lily couldn't get out of bed, (Madam Pomfrey's orders), James went to the ball and brought her back some food around 8:00. He moon-walked in, singing a song he had made up. Lily laughed at him, and he gave her that goofy grin.

"Ahh," he said. "And what would the night be without a little romance?" He put Lily's dinner tray on the bed and placed a dark red tablecloth and two long white candles on it. Then he turned off the lights, lit them, and placed a vase with red roses, resembling the one he had given her earlier, on it.

They ate in silence for a few minutes before Lily broke it. "Why does Sirius live with you?" she asked. He looked up into her eyes and slowly put down his fork.

"Sirius doesn't get along with his family. They're, well, I have to say it, they're not very nice people. There's a reason why he's in Gryffindor while the rest of his family is in Slytherin; they're just so different. They're up to their necks in the Dark Arts, and Sirius hates the Dark Arts. So do I, that's why he came to me. My entire family- my mom and dad, aunts and uncles, have spent their lives trying to fight dark witches and wizards. He's lived with me for over two years now." He stared into one of the candle flames, lost in thought.

"I wish we could do something," Lily said, looking into the flame as well. "About the Dark Arts, I mean. I wish we could put an end to the deaths of all these people."

"Well," James said, looking up at her. "According to the prophecy, we _are_ going to do something." 'Wow,' he thought. 'She looks so beautiful, sitting there in the firelight, red hair all over her shoulders, green eyes glowing.. Absolutely beautiful.'

"What are we supposed to do, though? I mean, we're just kids, we haven't even graduated yet," Lily said. Now she looked up into his eyes, which she now noticed were staring at her as if mesmerized.

"We can do anything we want," he said, still looking at her in that way, as if he were staring at her soul. It made her shiver. "I feel like I can do anything with you by my side. I.. I love you."

"You.. What?" she blinked, coming out of her daze. Her first instinct was panic- She couldn't fall in love, she would only get hurt! But then she looked into James's eyes, saw herself in James's eyes, and came to realize: "I love you too," she said. Then she started to cry.

"Why are you crying?" he asked, smiling and wiping away her tears.

"I'm so afraid of getting hurt," she said.

"I'd never hurt you," he looked honestly shocked.

"I know," she said, looking down, tears still leaking from her eyes. 'Traitorous eyes!' she thought. "But I'm still scared, you have no idea, my.. My dad, before he left, he used to hit my mom. And she still loved him. He'd cause her so much pain, and she was still a loving fool. I don't ever want to end up like her."

He tilted her head up so she was forced to look into his eyes. "I would never, NEVER, hurt you. I promise. As long as I'm alive, you'll be safe. I'm prepared to protect you with my life."

She smiled through her tears, the firelight making her eyes look like glittering emeralds. Suddenly the lights turned on and a tired voice said "Get out Potter." Lily blinked; It was like the lights coming on at the end of a sad movie with a happy ending.

James blew out the candles and stuffed everything back into his bag. He cleaned up everything they had left out and leaned over to kiss Lily quickly on the forehead, pressing something into her hand. Then he left, whispering "Happy Valentine's Day" on his way out.

"Boys," said Madam Pomfrey, coming over to take Lily's temperature and blood pressure. She mumbled about stupid teenage romance as she bustled around Lily busily, but Lily wasn't listening; she was staring at the shell James had pressed into her hand, the one he had painted tonight. It was a tiny painted picture, clearly of her in her dress robes, with her hair and clothes the way they had been the night Val had done her up. Lily marveled at how realistic it looked. Under it, painted in tiny calligraphy, was written:

"_Belle of the ball, 7th year. A night to remember."_

**A/N: ok, I warned you. I hate fluff, but it has to be written, because the wonderful goddess JK made it very clear that Lily and James have to fall in love and have Harry. Haha. Who, if you haven't realized by now, is the heir of Gryffindor. (In my story. I don't know about JK's.) Show of hands, who wants Alli and Sirius together? I haven't decided what I'm doing yet. So, I apologize for the fluffy crap, next chapter should be a lot more... a lot more... Well, you'll see. ;0)**

**-Ria **


	12. Back to the Future

Lily was released from the hospital wing on Sunday and allowed back to classes on Monday. She went to breakfast Monday morning feeling refreshed and eager to get back to a normal routine. As she entered the Great Hall, she walked to the Gryffindor table and sat down next to Alli. The marauders were down the table a bit, and James gave her a smile as she sat down.

"So," she said cheerfully to a very tired Alli. "How was the dance?"

"It was great," Alli said, stifling a yawn and handing Lily some buttered toast. "You did great with all of the arrangements."

"And," Lily dropped her voice to a whisper. "How was Sirius?"

"Surprisingly, we had a really good time. He was polite, but funny. He made jokes as we opened the dance because he knew I was nervous. I don't get it, he always seems so.. Different with the other girls."

"Maybe he doesn't care as much about them," Lily said, glancing down at the boys.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"They're talking about us," Peter said uneasily. His watery eyes kept darting over to where girls were sitting, giggling over their toast.

"Yup," said Sirius confidently, shoving a large piece of bacon into his mouth. "Of course they are, how could they resist?"

Remus stared at him. "Really, Sirius, your modesty amazes me."

Sirius thought for a moment, came up blank, and then grinned and said "Thanks, Mooney. Nobody's ever told me that before." He then began stuffing his face with pancakes.

"I wonder why," James said, laughing. He glanced up at the girls too, smiling at Lily before looking back down at his own breakfast of eggs.

"Oh, Prongs, I forgot to tell you," Sirius said, putting down his fork and becoming uncharacteristically serious. "I got the things."

"The things?" Peter asked, clueless.

"Oh, good," James said, rubbing his hands together. "Is the plan in action?"

"Oh no," Remus said, nervously looking up to there the teachers sat. "I didn't think you guys would actually do that..."

"Yup, the plan is all set and should be in action in a couple minutes."

Remus sighed. "You're really going to go through with it?"

"GO THROUGH WITH WHAT?" Peter asked, annoyed at being left out.

The other three boys blinked at him as if they had just noticed he was there.

"Well," James started, but was cut off by a small explosion coming from the Slytherin house table. There were a few screams, and then Severus Snape furiously came out of the crowd wearing a pink polka-dotted dress.

Sirius grinned. "We got a bit of inspiration of Prongs's dream. That's not all though.. Wait for it- "

There was another bang, and Lucius Malfoy was suddenly wearing a purple polka-dotted dress. Then, BANG- Regulus Black was in a lovely yellow polka-dotted dress, and BANG- Bellatrix Black was wearing a black tuxedo. Not only that, she had grown a long black beard. The cross-dressed Slytherins all ran out to get changed (And shaved, for Bella), and the Great Hall erupted in laughter.

It wasn't hard to know who was responsible for the prank, as James and Sirius had both fallen to the floor and were completely hysterical. Even Lily was laughing, although she was trying to hide it. She stood and walked over to where the boys lay rolling.

"Guys.. Hah.. Detention. That was bloody hysterical. Tomorrow night, trophy room. How did you guys do that? Hah. Don't be late." And she walked away laughing. Dumbledore's beard was even twitching suspiciously.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx**

"So, what's the spell?" Lily asked. Her and Alli were in the library, and Alli was trying to get Lily all caught up on the work she had missed.

"Well I think it's 'macaroni' or something." Alli was lazily leafing through a magaine.

"Alli!"

"Alright, alright. Um, give me your hands. This spell is supposed to transport us across the room, without a portkey. It's like dual Apparation or something, but can be done inside the castle because it isn't real Appararion, and can only take you a couple feet. It needs two people to work." Alli took Lily's hands in hers and frowned in concentration. "I believe we have to flick our wands, like this, and say '_portacola_'."

They flicked their wands and said _'portacola_', and everything went black.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Lily? Lily, are you ok?" a man's voice asked.

Lily blinked her eyes open, aware that she was still gripping one of Alli's hands. That's when she realized something had gone very, very wrong.

She was in a strange house, and a man was standing over her. Not a man- James! But there was something different about him. She frowned, realizing that he was about ten years older. She sat up quickly and looked around.

The house was warm and comforting; Thick, dark carpet and white walls surrounded Lily where she was laying. She blinked and looked down at herself and almost screamed; Not only was she wearing totally strange clothes: black jeans and a dark red shirt, as opposed to her black school robes, but her stomach popped out in a totally unnatural way. There was also a diamond ring on her wedding finger, set in a white gold band.

"No way," she said, shaking Alli awake.

"What the...?" Alli sat up fast. Her hair was longer, and surrounded her face. She was wearing a white blouse and tight jeans. "Dude, what's wrong with your stomach?"

"Alli," James scolded. "You know how self-conscious pregnant women are!"

Lily almost fainted. Pregnant?

"What the hell is going on?!" she asked, practically screaming.

Two children ran into the room: a boy of about the age of 7, with thick black hair, bright green eyes, and a girl of about the age of 4, with long red curls and the same green eyes. She looked like a miniature Lily. The boy looked like a miniature James.

"Mommy, Harry won't stop teasing me! He said my dress is ugly." The little girl ran behind Lily and wrapped her arms around her, sticking her tongue out at her brother.

"Oh, Mum, I did not!" the boy said. "I only said it was different. And look at it, it is!"

The little girl had somehow attached Christmas lights to her red and green dress.She grinned and twirled so that her skirt flowed out around her.

"Harry, Ella, please." James said. He was still frowning at Lily, scared that she had hit her head or something. "Why don't you guys go put on that Christmas video Uncle Sirius sent by owl? I left it on the mantel." He smiled at his children; It was evident that he adored them, and they obviously idolized him.

'My family is beautiful,' Lily thought, still looking around in amazement.

Lily looked the older James up and down. He had certainly aged well; His hair was as wild as ever, but his body was still perfectly in shape. He was wearing black pants and a navy sweater, and toned muscles were visible through his shirt.

"Um, James?" her 'husband' turned to her. "What's today?"

He walked over and smiled lovingly. The same damn smile that made Lily grin like an idiot. "Christmas Eve, silly. Did you bump your head when you and Alli ran into each other?"

Alli cracked up. "Ran into each other?" They both looked around the room and took in their surroundings; thick carpet that turned into hardwood floors, and a table set with a large meal.

"Yea, you were trying to catch the glass Ella knocked over on her way out of the room. Are you sure you're ok?"

"Yeah, fine," Lily said, trying to signal to Alli with her eyes. Alli nodded, silently agreeing to not let on that anything was wrong.

"Well in that case, would you come upstairs? Sirius and Remus will be here in about half an hour, and I need help getting the rest of the gifts wrapped. I'm sure Alli can watch the kids." He leaned forwards and kissed her. As James had grown, his kiss certainly had too; It was passionate and suggestive, giving Lily chills and melting her all at once.

"Sure," she said weakly, making to follow him.

"Wait," Alli said, grabbing Lily's elbow. "I.. I need her help with something. Go ahead up, I'll send her up in a few."

James nodded and exited the room. Lily turned to Alli, a dreamy look still on her face from James's look.

"What are you doing?" she asked. "Why can't I go upstairs?"

"Lily, wake up and smell the mandrake. He thinks you're his wife. His older, pregnant, mother of almost three wife. And, look at yourself; look at me! We both look older, look at my hair! Look at your hair, it's at your shoulders again, and straight, and you highlighted it. Anyway, you can't go upstairs with him because although you're around 27 on the outside, you're still barely 17 on the inside. And trust me, girl, he did _not_ want to wrap gifts up there." Alli said all of this in a hushed whisper.

Lily blinked and came to her senses. "No, he didn't. But how are we going to get back to the school? Even better question, how are we going to travel back 10 years in time?" she asked, frowning around the house.

It was exactly as she would have decorate her house, and she smiled at the fact that her taste wasn't going to change over the years. There was a family portrait on the wall; She and James were sitting on the beach, with their knees pulled up against them, while the two kids stood behind them. Lily was wearing a tasteful bathing suit, but she could still tell that she'd kept her figure after the first two kids. James had the same goofy smile, but he seemed happier. He seemed to be in better shape, too. Lily found the reason for this also hanging on the wall: A certificate proclaiming him to be a top-rank Auror. Also hanging on the wall were finger painted pictures, signed by 'Ella Potter' , and sketched drawings by 'Harry Potter'.

Lily and Alli quickly looked around the house, which was of a nice size, quite big, really, but still somehow modest. The room they had been in was the dining room. Next was the huge country kitchen, then the den, which was beautifully furnished with big squishy chairs and couches, lit by a huge fireplace. There was also a play room, and it was evident that Lily and James spoiled their kids; Small broomsticks leaned against the walls and dolls were lined up on shelves.

As Lily looked around, she feel deeper and deeper in love with her family. It was everything she had ever dreamed for. Feeling the child inside of her kick and move was the most amazing sensation she had ever felt, like a small reminder that she and James could create miracles.

The children dancing in front of the TV in the den to a sing-along looked like they didn't have a care in the world. It appeared to be a world without violence, a world without the Dark Arts, a world without the fear of being killed. Lily knew in her heart that there would never be a time when all evil was gone, but looking around her warm house, she felt as if anything were possible.

"We have to talk to Dumbledore," she said finally.

"About what?" James asked, coming down the carpeted steps.

"Well.. "Lily started, looking to Alli for help.

"Don't worry, he'll stop by tonight." James said distractedly, looking out the window at the bottom of the stairs at two figures that had just appeared out of nowhere. "Sirius and Remus are here, by the way."

Sirius and Remus were covered in snow when they came in. Remus was with a girl he introduced as Lucy. He hugged Lily and Alli hello, then gently touched Lily's stomach, and then went to see Harry and Ella, who were chanting "UNCLE REMUS! UNCLE SIRIUS!"

Sirius handed James a stack of presents ("Padfoot, you really shouldn't spoil them so much!"), gave Lily a kiss on the cheek, and then went to Alli. He kissed her in greeting, and Alli's eyes popped open in surprise. Why was Sirius kissing her? Were they- No! They couldn't be!

Sirius's hair was a bit shorter, and he had entered wearing a leather jacket and jeans. Remus looked a lot older, his hair starting to gray and his face looking tired, but his eyes were just as happy as always. He was wearing khakis and a red sweater, and he matched his date.

Eventually everyone calmed down and sat down to dinner. Lily served everyone, which proved hard since she didn't know where anything in the kitchen belonged. She eventually got everything together, and the old friends began their Christmas dinner together.

Lily was sitting next to Ella, who was sitting next to Harry, who was sitting next to James. Harry ate calmly and carefully while his sister danced in her seat and ate messily.

"So Lily," Remus said pleasantly, putting some stuffing on his plate. "Have you decided what to name the baby?"

"Um," she said, looking across the table at Alli. "I.. How about James?" she spit out the first name that came to her mind. Then she became aware that everyone in the room was staring at her, until Sirius began to laugh.

"Yes, Lily, wonderful. James the little baby girl. Well, I think it fits," he said, still laughing, but now at James. James threw a roll at him.

"I meant Jamie," Lily amended, putting up a hand to prevent James from throwing another roll. "Jamie, after James."

"That sounds good," Alli said, coming to Lily's rescue. "I mean, the other children were named for.. What were they named for?"

James smiled. "Harry was named after my grandfather, and Ella was named after Lily's grandmother. But we thought Harold and Eleanor were too old-fashioned for children, so we gave them shortened versions."

Lily looked down at Harry, who was staring at her over his sister's head. She sensed that he knew something was different about her. He gave her a small smile and went back to his dinner. Ella was eating with her tiny fist gripping her fork, trying her hardest to scoop up peas with it.

The rest of the meal was mainly just Sirius and James talking about quidditch, and James talking about work. Eventually most of the food was gone and the kids got bored and left the table.

"Delicious, Lily-darling," Sirius said with that same old grin. "Alli," Sirius continued. "Would you join me outside?"

Sirius and Alli went outside while Remus and Lucy took the kids into the den to open one present each. James watched Lily start to clean up, frowning suspiciously.

"Lily, is something wrong? You seem so distant tonight."

"You have no idea," she mumbled, trying to figure out which appliance was the dishwasher.

"Ah, but I do," said another voice, coming from the sliding glass doors that opened from the kitchen. It was Dumbledore, smiling tiredly at Lily. "Mrs. Potter, would you care to join me outside? I'd like a word."

James smiled and waved her on, starting to load the dishwasher himself. "Go ahead, I'll take care of this, and then I'm going to get the kids into their pajamas; Merlin knows they'll have us up at the crack of dawn tomorrow."

Lily walked out onto the big, beautiful porch with Dumbledore. She came across a grinning Sirius and an amazed Alli, both sitting on a bench swing.

"Sirius, could I have a word with the women, please? Just for a moment." Dumbledore bowed slightly. "And congratulations."

Lily looked curiously at Alli, who simply held up her hand in disbelief; on the ring finger of her left hand was a sparkling diamond. Sirius grinned and went into the house to talk to James.

"I.. I didn't know what to say," Alli stuttered. "I have no idea if my future self loves Sirius or not. I was so confused."

"Calm down, Miss Landry." Dumbledore said. "I have two very confused students running around the school, one claiming to be pregnant and the other complaining that she was going to get proposed to tonight. After talking to your future selves, I knew what had happened. And I'm going to return you to your own time now."

"Professor," Lily said, looking up at her house and into one of the upstairs windows, where she could see James playing with the children as they got into their pajamas. "Is this really our future?"

Dumbledore sighed. "Well, Miss Evans, it may be, and it may not be. When we are born, we are given a number of possible futures. Tonight you got a glimpse of one of yours. Truthfully, this might not be the future you get to live at all. So many things can change our destinies; For all we know, you and Mr. Potter may never get married. It is just a possibility. Now, are you both ready to go back to the school?"

They both nodded, too lost in thought to speak.

"Very well. I'll send you both to your dorm, and you will be returned to your proper bodies. I believe the spell you were trying to perform was the _portabola_, right? Yes, even one letter changed can change the way a spell goes. Ok, here we go."

Dumbledore took their hands and said the incantation. There was a blast of light, and Lily was laying in her bed.

"Als?" she said, peering through the darkness.

"Yeah."

"They were beautiful." Lily was thinking of her children, the intelligent Harry and the happy-go-lucky Ella.

"They really were." Alli's voice sounded sad, like she didn't want their trip to the future to end.

"Do you think that, if we want it enough, we could choose our futures? Control our destinies?"

Alli turned on her side. "No," she whispered. "Dumbledore is right, too many things influence our lives. Especially in these times of darkness. For all we know, some dark wizard could come and kill us all tomorrow."

"Yeah," Lily said right before she fell asleep. "But it was still kind of nice seeing that it's possible to have a world where we can be safe and happy."

**A/N: OK, It's 2:00 in the morning, so please excuse any Typos, hehe. Kind of interesting to see how Lily and James could have lived if Voldemort hadn't killed them, huh? Yes, Peter isn't in their future, because he would have been sent to Azkaban if Voldemort's plan had backfired more and Lily and James were alive. Or something like that. I'm so tired. Ok, review, and see you guys next chapter!**

**-Ria**


	13. Bathed in Moonlight

James couldn't help but notice that Lily was a bit withdrawn over the next days. He watched her eat dinner a couple of nights later, bent forward while Alli whispered in her ear.

"So, as I was saying," Sirius said, waving a chicken leg in Peter's face as a gesturing tool, "For tonight, after we leave the Shack, we can.. Uh, James? Hello?" James was frowning at Lily.

"Hmm?"

Sirius winked at Remus. "Hey, Prongs, Santa Claus called.. He wants you to help pull the sleigh this year." Remus shoved a napkin in his mouth.

"That's lovely," James said, now staring at his soup. Sirius gaped at him. Since when was James the brooding type?

"Wait, he did?" Peter asked, scratching his head.

Sirius shook his head. "I'm in hell."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Lily was late leaving Potions as she had to finish her essay. She was bent over her desk, her silky hair flowing into her face, when she felt a gentle hand sweep her hair out of the way and soft lips barely touch her neck. Smiling, she turned around.

"James, what are you doing?" She kept thinking about the adult James and the way he had kissed her, so seeing him here, in his school clothes, had given her a small jolt back to reality.

He gave her that goofy smile. "Kissing you?" He sat down in the seat next to her and looked around the bright classroom. "I'm gonna miss it here."

She looked up as she finished her paper with a flourish. "What?"

"When we graduate. I'm gonna miss it." He was being uncharacteristically serious, and she smiled unsurely.

"Let's not think about it. Hey, do you want to do something tonight? I think I've been around you too long," she said, rubbing her head. "I'm ready to sneak out."

"I can't tonight, love... It's Marauder's Night Out." He looked out the window, a huge grin on his face.

"Maybe I'll just have to get myself into some trouble."

James dramatically joked falling off of his chair. "What?" he asked as he picked himself up. "My little Lily Evans with her notes and her rules, looking for trouble?"

"Mmm," She said as she rolled up her essay. "See, there's this boy. He's captain of the Quidditch team, he's cute (and he knows it), and he's just turning out to be the most horrible influence on me..." He kissed her quickly, a hard capture of lips before she was laughing.

"How's that for an influence?"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Oh, stop groaning," a tall man with grey-speckled black hair at the front of the room muttered. "It's just review."

The man was Professor Rosen, the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, and he was tired. Weary would be a better word to describe the good-hearted man. A retired auror, he had been spending all of his extra time looking into the rising rate of murders; Sad, indeed, it was that every day there was a new murder, a new death, a new suspicious crime.

Today seemed as good as any to give the students free reign over their review for their N.E.W.T.S.

"Ok, just get partnered up and work on a defensive spell. I don't care which one you choose, just don't kill each other, please." A few appreciative chuckles rose up, but the class was so used to his jokes that the majority just rolled their eyes and got into partners.

Rosen sat down in his faded red chair and picked up a letter from Dumbledore. Apparently the more recent murders had been linked together by a symbol left over the place they were committed - A skull with a rancid snake protruding from it's mouth.

He peered over the class. 'It's a shame,' he thought. 'Here they are, in their seventh year, ready to begin their lives, and they have to go out into a world like this.' His gaze wandered to Lily Evans and Alli Landry. 'Clever girls,' he thought. 'Especially Evans. Pure desire to succeed, and talent. Interesting.' He then bent over a clean piece of parchment and quickly wrote a note to Dumbledore- _"I have a few inquiries about the Evans girl. Is tonight convenient for a meeting?" _Whistling for his grumpy old owl, he sent the note off as laughter erupted from the class.

Lily and Alli had both produced a patronus and they were laughing as they silvery shapes fought playfully with each other. This caught Rosen's attention for two reasons:

1.- He had never seen a patronus interact with anything but a dementor, and

2.- They had the oddest, most distinct shapes he had ever seen.

Lily's was a brilliant stag, while Alli's was a huge dog. The only members of the class who weren't cheering or laughing were the Marauders, who were huddled in a corner whispering furiously.

Rosen frowned; Usually, the boys would be fooling around while Lily and Alli were serious. Well, while Lily was serious and Alli was bored.

"Miss Evans, Miss Landry, please. Can I have a word?"The girls walked over with grave expressions on their faces as if they expected to be chastised or punished for their out-  
of-character fun. Rosen chuckled.

"No need to look so scared, girls. I actually find your festivities amusing. I only wanted to ask, have your patronuses always taken those shapes?"

Lily nodded while Alli shook her head.

"No," Alli said. "Mine used to be a tiger, but it's changed since...." she trailed off and sent Lily a significant look.

"Thanks," Rosen said, dismissing them with a nod. Turning, he began writing furiously in a faded leather-bound notebook. "Class dismissed early. Go find something to do."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"That was odd," Lily said as she pulled her cloak around her tighter. The girls had decided to take a quick walk in their free time before Charms. "I mean, Rosen has always been pretty weird with his dismissive manner, big words and jokes, but.. I don't know, the way he was looking at me kind of scared me."

"Yeah, amazingly weird," Alli said as she toyed with her ring. "But, anyway, what are you up to tonight?" Lily shrugged. "Didn't James show you how to sneak into Hogsmeade? I want to meet this Val, she sounds so... _cool_!"

Lily frowned. Sometimes Alli could just be _impossible_.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

That night, as a full moon cast a silver spotlight over the school, anyone looking outside might see a small menagerie of animals making their way jauntily across the grounds.

"What do you say we go into town and get some food?" The question seemed to come out a large black dog, but his mouth hadn't moved.

The next sound came directly from a small rat- "Yeah, James, come on."

A brilliant stag glanced back at a large wolf and nodded.

It may have appeared to be a wolf to the untrained eye, but if one looked closer they would have noticed a longer snout and a bushier tail. It was slightly larger than a wolf, and it was calm only for the moment. It was unmistakably a werewolf, calmed only by the presence of other animals to keep him company. "Him" would refer to none other than Remus Lupin.

That was his secret. Caring, compassionate, polite Remus Lupin turned into a monster once a month and had to be shut and locked away from the world with nobody but himself, whom he loathed, for companionship.

Of course, there was no way James Potter and Sirius Black would let their best friend suffer by himself every month. Upon learning his secret, they did something for him that would keep him faithful to them for years to come: They each became an Animagus, meaning they could each change into a different animal. When in company of the other animals, Remus kept his head and ended up having the best nights of his life rather than ones that would ordinarily be full of unbearable pain. Peter was hesitant, but it wasn't hard to convince him after a while; Peter did whatever his friends did.

James was a stag; Sirius was a large black dog; Peter was a rat.

"So, I'll run into Honeydukes and get some candy?" James asked, looking around empty Hogsmeade as they came out of an old, abandoned house.

"Yeah, but no vampire candy.. The blood gets Moony all excited and it's hard to get him back to normal," Sirius said with a flick of his long black tail. The tail flick was easily comparable to the quick grin that would take over Sirius's face had he been in human form.

"Right," James said, bounding off.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Darlings, I can't begin to describe how much fun I had tonight." Val's hair was red now, though nowhere near the natural red of Lily's; It was boarder-line purple, and tossed up in a high ponytail. She wore purple jeans and a black tank top, complimented by purple docs. "I was thinking to myself, 'Val, you are going to be bored to tears this week.' Be careful walking back to the school, girls."

They had spent the night in Val's shop, trying on dress robes and outrageous hairstyles. Alli was simply captivated by Val.

"She's so .. _Cool_!" Alli was grinning in a way that made Lily's cheeks ache.

"So you keep saying," Lily said, glancing at her watch. It was getting awfully late.. Ok, so she had broken the rules and snuck out, but she was still sensible Lily, and her senses were telling her to get into bed or she'd be a wreck the next day.

"It's so peaceful here at night," Alli murmured. Their only light was the moon.

A long howl split through the air, and Lily dropped her bag. "That sounded awfully close, didn't it?"

"Yeah," Alli said,looking up and snapping out of her daze. "C'mon, let's just get back. It's freezing." Another thin layer of snow was on the ground, covering the ice of last week's snow. "Where's the passage again?"

"James showed me a couple, actually. One was through the Shrieking Shack; Feeling brave?"

"No."

Lily laughed. "Ok, then, to get back through that mirror, we have to find the alley. It's just past Honeydukes."

The girls walked in a shivering silence and it seemed ages before they got to the alley. Lily was about to climb through the small opening in the ground when she heard a growl and looked up.

She was face to face with a werewolf.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"So, Albus, what do you think?" Rosen had just proposed his brilliant idea to the headmaster.

A few members of the Order of the Phoenix were gathered in a small cave, back in the mountains behind Hogsmeade.

"I think it's genius," a tall man with dark red hair said boldly. "But I think you should ask the Potter boy too, Professor."

"Gideon, please call me Albus," Dumbledore said with a smile.

"I don't think I could, Professor." Gideon Prewett smiled apologetically.

"Well," Dumbledore looked around the cave, lit by fire from his own Phoenix, Fawkes's flame. "I'll speak to Lily and James, but as Cistibal said earlier, they might not want to. It's a great deal of responsibility."

Somebody in the back cleared their throat.

Dumbledore smiled serenely. "Yes, Alastor?"

Alastor Moody stepped into the light. "Well, Albus," He spoke as if he and Dumbledore were the only people in the crowded space. In his opinion, they should have been. "All signs point to one of those two being or having something to do with the heir. They're strong kids, barely kids at all. And if you ask me, they're up to it. It's probably what Potter had in mind already, coming from his background. And Evans, as you told me, has a strong desire to do good. Let's give them a chance."

Cistibal, a short and thin man with white-blond hair, stepped forward. "I don't think we should let these.. _Kids_," He said 'kids' like it was a disgusting word, "have such a responsibility. It's unwise."

Fabian Prewett stepped forward. "It's the only way."

Dumbledore nodded. "I'll speak to Mr. Potter and Miss Evans tomorrow evening. I think it's only polite to give them a week to decide, don't you? The meeting is over."

He grabbed the tail of Fawkes and vanished, officially ending the meeting.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"LILY!" yelled a frantic voice, and suddenly James was by her side, guarding her and Alli.

Dazed, she merely stared at him and pointed at the werewolf. "That's a werewolf."

Had he not been trying to save her life, James would have laughed. "Yes, Lily, I need you to do me a favor. Don't scream, ok? Just hop on my back. You too, Alli. Ok?" He stared at her for a moment, then decided what he had to do.

"James, we won't both fit on your... AHH -" Her sentence was cut off as her boyfriend turned into a magnificent stag, and her scream was cut off as Sirius, appearing out of nowhere, put his hand over her mouth.

"You'll understand," Sirius promised. "Just, please get on." He picked up Alli, who was frozen in fear, and placed her on the stag's back. Lily climbed up uncertainly, trying not to hurt James.

She'd seen the stag countless times at the place by the lakeside, and James usually came along soon after. Things began to fit in her mind as neatly as the pieces of a puzzle coming together. How could she not have realized it before? She leaned forward, her hands on the antlers, and stuck her face in the stag's coat. "I knew you were beautiful."

The werewolf, who had been glaring at the girls, pounced as soon as the stag took off. Sirius quickly became the giant dog and jumped on him, holding him back.

Lily tried to look around, to see where James was taking her. She tried to turn around to make sure Alli, who was gripping her waist, was alright. She tried to hold on to James. She tried, but everything went black.

**A/N: Wow, it took me forever to write this chapter, I'm so sorry for that. Anyway, sorry if I made any spelling/grammatical mistakes, I'm posting it anyway because you've waited long enough. Yes, it ends on a cliffhanger, but im just so eager to get this chapter over with. So, Lily and Alli are figuring it all out. Next chapter shouldn't take as long, but if it does- Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanza, Happy Winter Solstice, and Happy December. If I've forgotten anything, let me be kidnaped by leprechauns and beaten with their sticks. See you in chapter 14, cause I'm sure Lily will wake up full of questions...**

**-Ria**


	14. Dream of Death

_Lily was dreaming. She was running through dark woods bathed in silver moonlight. She tripped over the hem of her long white dress and turned to see a sneering face looking at her. _

"_Give up, Mudblood." _

"_No!" Had that come out of her mouth? Her voice was different, older and more mature. "I'll die before I join you!" She shivered, as it was All Hallow's eve and there was an eerie chill in the air in addition to the breeze._

"_Fine," said a huge man with a daunting face. "Your choice."_

"_EXPELIARMUS!" A tall man with thick black hair came out of nowhere. His face was serious and familiar, and he looked frightened. "Lyla, this way!" He grabbed her hand and led her through the trees. Lily felt her body, which was out of her control, relax. _

"_Oh, thank Merlin, Bryant. I thought they'd killed you!"_

"_They tried. And Lyla, they'll try again. And succeed." He was still pulling her through trees. She lost sense of where they were as they went deeper and deeper into the woods, moonlight being their only guide. Random jagged plants snaked around their feet as they ran, making it hard for them to keep a fast pace._

_Lily gasped. "What will we do?"_

"_More than just our lives depends on our survival; they'll kill anyone who isn't like them. There's an ancient charm, my love, that once cast will give us another chance. But..." Bryant glanced over into her distressed green eyes as the cruel wind whipped her long curls around her beautiful face._

"_Yes?"_

"_We have to die." _

_Lyla gasped. "If we die, they win! You've heard the prophecy, we're the ones to stop them!"_

_Bryant stopped running at a small clearing and turned, putting his hands on Lily's shoulders. "We'll be born again, when we are needed. We'll be together again, and we'll stop them."_

"_But what if it's too late?" Lily felt fear pounding in her chest, no, Lyla's chest, through her long ivory silk dress._

"_It's our only chance. They'll die as we do. Slytherin will hear about this, and he'll halt their mission until his heir is born and ready. For all we know, that could be decades or centuries from now. If we use this charm, we'll be brought back when we're needed." He turned as dark cloaked figures came out of the bushes. _

"_Gryffindor, surrender!" They were surrounded now, with no way out._

_Another cloaked man spoke in a deep voice. "You will either join us, letting us kill this mudblood after we use her to kill her own kind, or you will die."_

_Bryant 's hazel eyes were staring hard into Lyla's. "Do you trust me?" he whispered._

_She stared back determinedly. "With all of my being."_

_He took her hands and began to whisper soft words. A bright silver mist swirled around them, lifting Lyla's waist-long red hair like a soft breeze before vanishing as he finished. He nodded and winked at her, squeezing her hands, then turned to the other men._

"_Then I choose death. This will not be the last you see of me, and your master knows it. Kill me now, though I can promise that we will be victorious in the end." He gripped Lyla's hand tightly and prepared to be killed._

_As killing spells were cast, they reflected off the silver mist that was once again surrounding Lyla and Bryant. As Slytherin's followers cast spells of death and torture, they got hit by their own spells as they bounced back. Lyla and Bryant said goodbye, but not forever._

"_I'll see you again," Bryant whispered as his life slowly ended._

"_Yes," Lyla whispered. "...I'll be waiting."_


	15. Such Great Friends

Lily sat up with a gasp as her eyes popped open. "NO!"

James was sitting next to her, on the edge of a bed- his bed. She was in his dormitory, in his bed.

"What am I doing here? We have to save them!" She frantically tried to get up, but James held her with a steady hand.

"Lily, they're fine. Alli is in her own bed, and Sirius and Peter are with Remus. I can explain."

"No, you don't understand!" She was still caught up in the events of her dream. "They love each other, and they're dying!"

James just stared at her before whispering softly. "Lily, I think you were dreaming." She looked so bloody_ pale_. "What do you remember from tonight?"

Lily's breathing was fast and hard, as if she really had been running through the woods. Her body ached as if she had been hit with spells. She couldn't have been dreaming, could she have? Oh, God, she'd only been dreaming! The realization made her give a grateful laugh as she sat up and threw her arms around James. Then she began to cry.

"Lily," James said, uncertainly returning her hug as tears flooded into his shirt. "You're trembling."

"I dreamt of them, James. Bryant and Lyla. I _was _Lyla."

James pushed her an arm's length away from him so he could study her face. "You what?"

"The night they died. _I_ died. As Lyla. And the cloaked figures.." She told him her entire dream as he sat patiently and listened. "What do you think?"

"I think it must have been very painful for you to relive Lyla and Bryant's death."

Lily took his hands in hers. "You always know exactly what to say." Then she jolted at how similar her action was to the way Bryant had grabbed Lyla's hands, just before they died.

James sighed heavily. "I'm afraid words can't explain how sorry I am for what really happened tonight. Lily, think about what happened before you passed out."

Lily frowned. "I was trying not to remember that."

"Ah. So you _do_ remember. I guess I should have told you before.." he trailed off apologetically.

"The werewolf." Lily said quietly, staring at the duvet.

"Yes."

"It was Remus, wasn't it?" Now she looked up into his eyes, and he couldn't lie to her.

"Yes, that was Remus." His eyes were sad.

"I thought so.. I've thought it for a long time, as it's hard not to notice how he disappears once a month. I just didn't want to believe it, for his sake. It must cause him so much pain."

James stared at her. 'She was almost killed tonight, and all she can think about is how Remus feels. Christ, I love her.' He cleared his dry throat. "So, you're not afraid of him? You still want to.. Be his friend?"

Lily almost laughed. "Of course I still want to be his friend! He's still Remus, and he's always been the same, I just know for sure now." She leaned back against James, his hands around her waist.

"That's his greatest fear, you know," James murmured. "That everyone will find out and hate him." He felt like running his fingers through that glorious hair, so he did.

"James.. You.. And Sirius.." She couldn't think of how to word her question.

"Became an animagus." he said simply. "We couldn't let him go through that by himself, love. I'm a stag, Sirius a dog, and Peter a rat. Sirius and I are big enough to keep him in check. Do you hate me for not telling you?"

"I think I love you even more."

He blinked at her and she laughed.

"You're such a good friend is all I mean. And you're brilliant. It's a hard thing to do, and must have taken you a while."

James nodded and leaned over to kiss her. "You passed out on the way back to the castle, so I brought you here. Alli's fine, I explained everything to her on the way to the Common Room, after I changed back; I wanted you here so I could talk to you when you woke up and make sure you were ok."

Lily suddenly jumped. "I'm in your bed! In the boys' dorms!"

James laughed. "So you just noticed?" She looked mortified. He found it amazingly adorable and somehow arousing.

"If anyone knew I was here..."

He stopped her with a kiss. "The guys will be out all night. Full moon." He kissed her deeper, and she practically melted in his arms. "Why don't you stay with me?" She abruptly pulled away. "Don't worry," he continued, "I won't try anything like _that_.. But you can't deprive me of your kisses."

She relaxed and playfully leaned over to bite his bottom lip. "Well, if I must, I must," she whispered and took him under with a kiss.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Lily brought flowers to the Hospital Wing the next day, where Remus was laying in a bed and leafing through his Transfiguration text. He glanced up as she entered and sat up fast.

"Lily, listen, Sirius told me what happened, and I can explain every-" Lily put up a hand to silence him. She looked unharmed enough, in her school robes with her hair pulled back neatly. Remus glanced at the clock and figured she had stopped in after History of Magic. He hated missing classes, but some months he was left so weak after the full moon that he had to take a day off. Of course his teachers knew why, so they never questioned his absence. However, other students did, so he tried to miss as few classes as possible.

"Hello, Remus, how are you feeling?" When he only stared at her in amazement, she gave him a serene smile and continued. "James explained everything to me, and I decided to come and talk to you."

He sighed. "I guess you don't want anything to do with me now, huh?" He was staring at the window, trying his best to avoid her gaze.

Lily placed the flowers - yellow roses for friendship- in a jar next to his bed. Then she leaned over and kissed his forehead lightly. "Don't be stupid, ok?" She laughed lightly at his expression. "I don't care, Remus. You're still sweet Remus, aren't you? And I was your friend before I found out, so I'm still your friend now. I just know where you go every month. Last night was almost a disaster, but James and Sirius made sure nothing happened. I've thanked them both extensively this morning. Not Peter, though," She said with laughter in her eyes. "He ran last night at first sight of danger. Poor guy, he's so different from his friends. But, Remus..." She got serious and bit her lip. "It must hurt so much," she whispered.

His blue eyes were suddenly moist. "Yeah, but I was bit when I was really young, so I'm used to it. Truth is, the nights I spend with James and Sirius and Peter are actually kind of fun." Lily nodded, and the bell rang, meaning she had two minutes left to get upstairs for Divination.

"I have to go. I just wanted to stop in and see how you were. Alli sends her love and says to tell you that she doesn't care either. We're your friends, Remus. No matter what you are." And with a bright smile, Lily left.

Remus sighed and rolled over. He had never dreamed he would have such great friends.

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**A/N: Ok, I wasn't expecting to update this soon, especially a double update, but here it is! I guess 13 was just an unlucky number. Both of these chapies are short, 14 because it's just the dream and 15 because it didn't need to be long. So, it's not a cliffhanger, but I thought the character interactions were cute. Poor Remus.. Well, he's got great friends. Anyway, Happy Hols once again and happy reading! Oh, I need my reviewers to do me a favor.. Should I end this soon, or keep it going? And, should I have Lily and James live, instead of die? If you read this, please review and let me know what you think. I was going to stop this soon (really soon) and write a different fic without all the destiny crap.. So, give me your opinion :D**

**-Ria-**


	16. Unexpected plans

Lily flopped down on her bed. It was Friday night, and she had just gotten in from the Quidditch match against Ravenclaw. James had, of course, led his team to a great victory, and the entire house was celebrating downstairs. However, Lily was exhausted and could only celebrate for so long before slipping upstairs unnoticed.

Alli entered, grinning from ear to ear and chewing animatedly on a cookie. "You, miss, should be downstairs swooning over your boyfriend."

Lily cocked an eyebrow at her best friend, and Alli laughed.

"Ok, so you'd never be caught dead swooning over 'big-headed Potter', or anyone else for that matter, but you get what I'm trying to say."

"I'm a bit tired. So, Alli," Lily said carefully, "Have you heard about Sirius and that Ravenclaw?"

"Yeah." Not looking at Lily, Alli picked up a muggle contraption called 'nail polish' and began to paint her nails.

"And?"

Alli sighed. Lily didn't miss a trick, and she knew there was no use in lying.

"I don't really mind, and that confuses me. I thought I liked him, but... I don't. I don't know."

"I know how that feels." Lily moved over and made room for Alli to climb in, putting her arms around her...as James walked in.

He gave them a cheeky smile and leaned back in the door frame with his arms crossed.

"Please, ladies, don't let me interrupt."

Lily rolled her eyes and threw a pillow at him.

"How did you get up here? Didn't the stairs turn into a slide like they did for Sirius in second year when he was dating Muffy Midgen?"

James grinned and shook his head. "When are you going to learn, Evans, that there's nothing James Potter can't do?"

"I'm starting to believe that," Lily muttered, pulling herself off the bed and crossing to look out the door. "There really isn't a slide. How did you do it?"

"Jiggled the railing and kicked the bottom step," he said nonchalantly. He glanced at Alli. "Are you ok?"

She smiled. "Sure, of course I am. Just a little tired.. I think I'm going to get some sleep. Good game today, James."

"Thanks," James turned to Lily. "Can we talk somewhere alone?"

Lily frowned at Alli. "Do you mind if I leave for a bit, Als? I know you're upset, I can stay.."

"Nah, go ahead, I'm already half asleep." And she was, with hands carefully on the pillow so that her three painted nails wouldn't stain the duvet.

James and Lily quietly exited and stood in the hall between the stairs and rooms. James surveyed Lily, looking her up and down and taking in her jeans and t-shirt.

"I've just received an owl from my father," he said carefully, "And it involves you."

She just blinked, so he continued.

"He invited me to spend the dayr with him and my mum tomorrow night, and requested that you come with me."

"Why?" Lily frowned slightly. She had overheard Lucius Malfoy telling his dumb friends that his parents would never let him date anyone other than a pure-blood witch of high status one day while she was in the library, and James's parents were pure-blood like the Malfoys. Would they think she was not worthy of dating their son? Frankly, Lily had never liked the term 'pure-blood'. It made her think of the ugly dogs her sister's boyfriend's sister kept. True, she had even heard the term 'pure-blood' come out of James's mouth, but it made her nervous nonetheless.

James rattled on, oblivious to Lily's frantic thoughts. "He says he has something to discuss with us. I'm just as surprised as you are, he's never pulled me out of school before. And it says that he already arranged everything with Dumbledore, so I guess we're allowed. What do you think?"

Lily laughed sourly. "What do I think? I think I'd rather go one-on-one with an acromantula than meet your parents tomorrow."

James gave her that cocky grin. "I'm sure Hagrid could find one for you."

"_James_."

"Alright, alright. Sorry. Anyway, why are you so scared about meeting my parents?"

Lily looked away. "I don't really think I'm what they had in mind when they imagined the girlfriend of the last Gryffindor."

James stared at her for a moment before dissolving into hysterical laughter.

"JAMES!"

"I'm- hic -sorry, it's just that.. You've never met my parents, and you're_ exactly_ who they'd want me to date. They don't care that you're muggle-born, if that's what your afraid of. I told you, Lyla was muggle-born, so they'll probably like you better because of that, with the whole prophecy thing. So, you're coming?"

"Uhhhh." That was about all Lily could manage. It was very rare indeed for Lily Evans not to have words bounce smartly off her tongue. The loss of speech made her even more nervous- What if she couldn't talk when she met them? They'd think she was barbaric!

"Great, see you tomorrow, we're meeting them in Hogsmeade at noon for lunch, then spending the day with them." James gave her a big, loud kiss, then cheerfully made his way back to his party.

Lily slowly walked back into her room, looking over the peacefully sleeping Alli.

She ran and jumped on her best friend, screaming "ALLI, GET UP, I NEED YOUR HELP!"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Alli yawned and handed Lily her purse. "That should do it."

It was Saturday morning, A.K.A. Judgement Day.

Lily had decided to wear her long pale blue skirt with her long-sleeved white blouse. She had half of her hair eloquently pulled back with the rest left down, but of course a few tendrils had escaped her vengeful blasts of hair spray and come loose. Her make-up was conservative and subtle, a great credit to Alli since Lily rarely wore make-up and had insisted her friend help her.

They had spent a great deal of the night deciding what Lily should say and wear.

"I owe you, Als." Lily hurried out to meet James in the Common Room.

Alli grinned. 'I've never seen Lily care what she looked like or said,' she thought. '...She's got it bad.' If Lily hadn't cared so much about James, she wouldn't give a damn about his parents.

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**A/N: Hey everyone, I hope you had a nice holiday! Not much happens in this chapter, and it's really short, but I think you'll find chapter 17 eventful enough, hehe. I was trying to fit it all into one chapter, but chapter 17 requires a lot of detail that I don't have the energy to write at this hour. So, I'm posting a short chapter 16 so you have at least something to read. This would have been up sooner, but my friend came into town and I spent some time with her... So you all can blame Jane for the delay ;D. Haha I miss her. Ahh, I need sleep. Ok, go review, tell me what you want to see, and I'll see you in chapter 17.**

**-Ria**


	17. Meet the Parents and the Order

"Mum, Dad, this is Lily."

James had steered Lily into the lobby of The Three Broomsticks and proudly introduced her to his parents.

A beautiful woman with long, dark brown hair and deep blue eyes stood and offered her hand. "Hello, Lily," she said. There was a musical lilt to her vice, but Lily couldn't place the origin of her accent. She was wearing black pants and a red shirt, her hair was pulled pack gracefully, and Lily's first impression was 'She's so cool!' Her face greatly resembled James's.

"Hi there," said a friendly looking man. He had the same eyes and thick black hair as James, no facial hair, and he was wearing jeans and a navy sweater. His face was a bit more narrow, and there were a few defined scars along his jaw line.

"Lily," James said happily. "This is Kathleen and Matthew Potter, known to me as Mum and Dad."

"Hello, Mr. And Mrs. Potter," Lily said nervously, trying to be polite. Fromwhat she had heard fromJames, the Potters were very powerful and very important."I'm pleased to meet the both of you."

"Oh, sweetie, Kathy," Kathleen said, laughing. "Mrs. Potter is my mother-in-law."

"Matt," Said Matthew with a wink. He turned to James. "We're expecting one more person before our party is complete."

"Who?" James asked, hugging his mother.

"Ahh," Kathy said. "Here he comes now."

Dumbledore came in the doors with a breeze and walked over to them. "Mr. Potter, Miss Evans, Matt, Kathy." Dumbledore grinned and bowed his head. "Ahh, this way."

Dumbledore and the Potters led Lily and James to a private parlor, where they were surprised to find a small group of people sitting and waiting for them.

"I'm sorry, Lily and James, that wekept this a secret and said you were having lunch with the Potters, but you see, it's important that nobody in the school finds out." Dumbledore talked quickly as he walked into the room and took a seat at the head of the table.

There were 5 men and 2 women in the room, all staring at Lily and James as if sizing them up. Lily recognized Professors McGonagall and Rosen, but the other three were strangers. One was glaring sourly at Lily as if she was intruding.

A tall man with dark red hair stood up, smiling in a friendly way. "Hello, Lily, James. My name is Gideon Prewett. May I introduce you to my brother, Fabian," -the other red haired man, though his hair was lighter, "Alastor Moody," - the man with the extremely scarred face and ratty hair, "Gus Cistibal," - the glaring man with bleached hair and cold eyes, "and Ariella Figg," -the smiling young woman with the long honey-coloured hair.

Gideon began to speak again. "Now, as you both know, our world is in trouble. There have been attacks everywhere and _so many_ people are dying. Our Aurors have been working like crazy. And so has the Order."

"The what?" James asked.

"Ahh," Dumbledore said, standing again. "An excellent place to start. The Order of the Phoenix. The Order of the Phoenix is a secret organization, run by myself and other members, to stop the rising Dark Lord and his followers.We have many members, though maybe not as many as we need. Which is why we brought the two of you here. Cistibal?"

The scowling man blinked and stood up. "Matt Potter tells us that his auror department is lacking. They need fresh blood, so to speak, and have decided to take on two persons to train, as aurors, as soon as they leave Hogwarts And I've been told by your teachers that the two of you are the best choices. Well?!" he barked.

James and Lily looked at each other, confused. Alastor Moody stood up, glaring at Cistibal with distaste.

"What that sad excuse for an auror means to say is, Would the two of you like to study to become aurors after graduation? You both have the appropriate O.W.L.s, but this wouldn't be the ordinary auror training. Instead of it taking three years for you to qualify, we plan to train you in a year. That is, if you decide to take us up on our offer. We are also offering you a place in the Order, though we warn you that it will be extremely dangerous and life-threatening every step of the way. You have a week to decide, and we will meet here again next Saturday." Moody sat back down.

Matthew looked from Lily to James. "Do either of you have any questions?" When they just stared at him, he continued. "Of course, your mother and I will be home if you need to owl us any questions, as you're both a bit shocked at the moment."

"You understand, of course, why this has to be kept secret?" Dumbledore asked. They nodded. "Good, now you're both free to spend your Saturday with the Potters."

"Wait," Cistibal said, standing again and frowning at Dumbledore. "Are you sure about this? The Potter boy is an obvious choice, his father being the Head Auror and all, but the girl? She's... different."

There was fire in Lily's eyes. "A muggle-born, is that what you mean by different?" she asked dangerously, her tone full of controlled fury. It made her a bit frightening. James grinned.

Ariella cleated her throat loudly and stood up, glaring at Cistibal. "As you know, Cistibal, my own sister, Arabella, is a squib. Had I been judged by the members of my blood as opposed to my ability, as you are seemingly doing with Miss Evans, I would not have been accepted as the esteemed Healer that I am. The countless lives that I've saved by my discovery of the use of Mandrake would have been wasted. Now I really,_ really _think you should sit down and shut up."

Cistibal sat down abruptly, muttering, "That's not what I meant."

"You're damn right it's not," Lily said, and Professor McGonagall sent her a warning look. Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling suspiciously, and James was laughing. Even Matt was chuckling, giving Cistibal a look as if to say '_Ha-ha'_.

Kathy gave Cistibal one withering look, then stood up and said "James, Matt, Lily, shall we?" and exited. Lily watched her go before getting up and following her. She gave Professors McGonagall a nod, smiled at Dumbledore, shot a "pleased to meet you" to the Prewetts, winked at Ariella, and cocked an eyebrow challengingly at Cistibal on her way out. She _would_ prove herself to him.

"Ahh, my girl, I love it when you get mad. That red-headed heat radiating from that tight little body.." James laughed as Lily slapped him upside the head.

Matthew was holding his wife's hand as they walked happily up the street behind their son, lagging back a bit. "They remind me of us," he said, leaning over to whisper in her ear while using his other hand to rub the back of his head, where he'd been hit by his wife many times in his days of courting.

"Aye," Kathleen whispered back. "Matt, I think we've found her."

Matthew stopped and looked at his wife. "James," he called, not taking his eyes off Kathy's. "We'll meet you back here in an hour, ok? Be safe."

Kathy led him to a bench and sat down. "Think about it- She's muggle-born, powerful, she even_ looks_ like Lyla, Matt, for Christ's sake."

"She's a pretty one," Matt noted, nodding slowly.

"As a member of the Order, I'm happy that we've found the prophets and will soon enough know who our heir is. As a mother, I'm simply ecstatic that my son has fallen in love."

"Fallen in love?"

"Yes," she said matter-of-factly. "In love. And too deep to get out now."

"How do you know that?"

"Oh, I remember a similar expression on another man's face on his wedding day. Under the stars..."

Matt pulled her against him, his arms around her, as they watched their son walk off happily with his girlfriend.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

James and Sirius were, unsurprisingly, in detention.

"I can't believe McGonagall didn't like our cat-nip in her hat joke," Sirius complained as they scrubbed their transfiguration professor's classroom floor.

"Yeah, but at least we realized she was in a bad mood in time to magically remove the kitty litter we filled her desk with," James said with a grin.

"Hey, Prongs, can I ask you something?" Sirius said, suddenly putting his rag back in the bucket of soapy hot water. (McGonagall had, of course, insisted that no magic be used.)

"Sure," James said, noting the seriousness in his tone and turning to face him.

"You really like Evans, don't you? I mean, it sounds like a stupid question, since you've been chasing her for years. I always thought it was just a crush, or more like a challenge since she was the only girl who wouldn't have you. But..." Sirius frowned, as if he were not sure if he was prying too far into James's personal life. "Do you.. You know, love her?"

James waited a moment, then smiled slightly. "Yes. I really do, it almost scares me how much I love her. I think... I think I'm going to ask her to marry me." Then he stopped and blinked, as if the thought had just come to him. When had he decided that?

Sirius leaned over and hugged James like a brother. "This doesn't mean we're breaking up the Marauders, does it?"

James grinned. "No bloody way, Marauders are for life."

**X.X**

**A/N: I'm too tired for an author's note.**


	18. Visions through time

**A/N:Ok, readers, the a/n is at the beginning because this chapter ends suddenly and cliffhangery. Yes, I just made that word up. Anyway, this chapter will confuse you greatly, and I apologize in advance. All will be explained, I promise! And it may seem incredibly random.. Because it is. Everything in this chapter is significant. Read. Review. Yell at me. Hah.**

**OH, and to my reviewers: I love you guys so much. I don't do individual shout-outs, but I think I might next chapter because you guys deserve it. So if you have any questions or something to say, go for it, this is your chance. Heh. Like I said, all will be explained. Next update could come at any time- CONSTANT VIGILANCE! Oh, and I'm gonna change my rating to R, for language and just in case. I don't know if I can put sex in - my friends read this! Hahaha but we'll see. **

**I have a popsicle, squee.**

**-Ria**

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"Ew."

Coming back from Quidditch, James had stepped in dog... mess. 'Probably Sirius, the prat,' he thought. 'He always thought it was funny when people stepped in shit. Bloody dog.'

He was making his way back up to the castle, deep in thought. He and Lily had spoken about the Order, in private of course, many times. They were still undecided, but considering. He was looking to the sky, where the sun was setting, when he saw Lily, walking silently into the forest.

"Lily?" he called, but she didn't answer him. 'Odd,' he thought.

He followed her swiftly, but she broke into a run. After a while he was straining to see her through the trees, her long hair flying around, her emerald cloak billowing behind her. She would not answer his calls, and it was dusk;Soon they wouldn't be able to see. He had the fleeting thought to go for help, but decided against it; he might lose her altogether.

James was running now, cursing the stiff jeans he had changed into after practice. Lily was leading him into the deeper parts of the forest now, and damn near scaring the hell out of him.

"James!" somebody suddenly yelled. James turned around and saw Dumbledore, standing against a tree, calm as could be, as if he hugged trees in deadly forests everyday.

"Professor," he said, stopping, his impatience growing."Pardon my french, but what the _hell_ is going on here?" He gripped his wand and glared at his headmaster like it wasDumbledore's fault his girlfriend was running crazy through the woods.

"James," Dumbledore said excitedly. "It's time."

James gave him a sarcastic look. "Oh, is it? Your water broke, professor? Allow me to grab your bag and drive you to the hospital, how far apart are the contractions?" James had had it. Why couldn't he and Lily just be happy?

Sirius ran up, panting and sweating. James gaped in amazement. "What, is it meet randomly in the Dark Forest night and everyone forgot to tell me?!" He threw up his hands in a kind of defeat and glared at Sirius. Oh, damn Sirius, who could have countless girlfriends without having to worry aboutthem being 300 year old dead witches. Well, in spirit, anyway.

Sirius cocked an eyebrow. "I saw you on the map and followed you out here, though I have no idea why."

"Shh," Dumbledore urged gently. He then stuck his wand into the air and something silver shot out of it. "They'll be here soon. Then we can see. We can finally see." The old man was practically dancing on the spot.

James rubbed the spot between his eyes; Oh, he had a headache. "Please, Professor, can we just find Lily and go back for dinner?"

"No." James turned around and came face-to-chin with his father, who had appeared out of nowhere. "We have to wait, James."

James could only sputter. "What the flobberworm is going on?" he finally managed.

Kathy (-where had she come from?-) gave him a sympathetic look and ruffled his hair. "Albus?"

Dumbledore nodded.

"Well, James, do you know what today's date is? March 15th, a date that has been mentioned in history for it's rotten luck. It is the day of Ides during which Caesar was killed, so the date is even known by muggles. It is a rotten day. It was, also, Lyla Dubaer's birthday." James blinked at him, wondering why they were standing in the middle of the forest and where all of those people - for now there were about 30 of them- had come from. He would have found the situation less odd if he were drinking tea with a Mad Hatter, a character from one of those muggle movies Sirius was so fond of.

Dumbledore cleared his throat and continued. "I was watching Lily very closely at dinner tonight when she went stiff and excused herself. I knew the date, and what would happen. Lily is 17. On Lyla's 17th birthday, she was walking through this forest when she heard a yell." As Dumbledore spoke, there was a rustle in the bushes and Lily walked past. James waved, but then realized that she couldn't see him; she was only about 30 feet from him, but she was also 300 years away. Dumbledore talked as Lily continued. "She turned and saw herself being surrounded by followers of Slytherin. And then a miracle happened." Hooded figured surrounded Lily now, arriving as quietly as his own parents and all of the other people.

James went to run to her, but his father held him fast under the arms. "DAD!" he yelled. "What are you doing? Come on!"

Matt shook his head at him sadly. "That isn't Lily, James. She's in a different world." He was right- Lily's eyes were dim and unseeing. She was fighting the hooded creatures, but it was as if she knew where they would be before they got there; she knew the movements they would make. It was like she was reliving a memory. James joltingly realized that she was.

He stopped struggling for his dad to let him go when he saw what was coming: Unicorns. About 30 unicorns. He turned to look at Dumbledore, who had a triumphant look on his face. Sirius was struggling against Fabian Prewitt, as he too was trying to get to Lily. Everybody else was staring in an awe.

The unicorns seemed to walk straight through the hooded figures and surround Lily, who had been struck and fallen to the ground. A sudden song flew overhead, filling James with hope and amazement; Phoenixes were also flying in now. James could no longer see Lily behind the animals.

'I'm dreaming,' he thought.

Suddenly, Lily began to rise up as though pulled by an invisible force. She was unconscious, her eyes closed now, but she was glowing. And now, she was no longer in her school robes but a long, white lace dress. It had long sleeves that came to triangles on her hands and a low, v-collar. Her hair had come out of her ponytail and came to the back of her knees in red curls. She was Lyla Dubaer.

"And then it happened," Dumbledore whispered. Lyla opened her eyes slowly.

Her face was more mature, as if it had seen much more. It was the face of a wise witch, of a 17 year old pushed into adulthood. She looked around knowingly, and then frowned at the cloaked figures. Her body began to vibrate, and a bright light pulsated from it. The light spread like sunlight and the cloaked figures were struck down. The only people to be hurt were the cloaked, dark wizards. Lyla made sure of that.

She checked that the rest were unharmed, and then she turned her wise gaze to James. She was still glowing internally, and still floating. Smiling serenely at James, she whispered, "My love, it's been so long." Her voice was strong and a bit deeper than Lily's. It sounded like it was coming from somewhere deep inside.Lyla nodded. "I knew we'd make it."

And then the glow went out and she fell to the ground.


	19. Explanations

James dove forward and caught her, then looked at her and dropped her. Who was she, anyway?

Sirius was staring at James. He turned to Dumbledore and asked the same question that just couldn't make the transition from James's brain to his lips- "What the fuck just happened?"

The people in the forest were laughing and cheering like it was New Years. Dumbledore made his way over to Lily, James, and Sirius.

"My office, then?" he asked quietly, handing them a branch from a nearby tree. "Hang on, ...3... 2...1.."

A swift jerk behind the navel later and they were in Dumbledore's office. Sirius just looked at James, gave him a supportive nod. He sensed his friend wasn't exactly up to talking at the moment.

The sun had fully set, but Dumbledore's office was lit by a roaring fire. Fawkes, Dumbledore's phoenix, wasn't on his perch.

"Well well well," said a smug voice behind them. "I've seen her before." It was one of the ex-headmasters' portraits.

"Yes," said another one happily. "It's about time she's come back to us."

"To tell the truth," another one said with a grin, "I've thought it was Evans all along."

"SHUT UP!" James yelled, and they fell silent. Dumbledore finally entered, through the door.

He smiled his calm, serene smile and gestured to the chairs in front of his desk. "Allow me, James." He patiently walked over to Lily and studied her, then pointed his wand at her and said "ennervate." Lily woke up and frowned.

After realizing she was in James's arms, she re-closed her eyes and muttered "Remind me not to eat the roast again." Sirius laughed.

"Lily?" James whispered. She once again opened her eyes; they looked so tired. "Do you know what just happened?"

She nodded. "I was eating dinner, and I think I passed out."

James stared hard at Dumbledore. The headmaster nodded and sat down.

"Lyla Dubaer attended Hogwarts. She secretly took care of the unicorns in the forest, as they were creatures of purity that were being persecuted. Dark wizards were killing them off in her time, looking for immortality. She protected them, and in return they protected her when she needed it. On this date, 300 years ago, she was going out to see them when she was attacked by dark wizards who snuck into the school. Back then, Hogwarts did not have all of it's protection measures. For example, it was easy for anyone to apparate into the grounds."

"Wait," Sirius said, suddenly realizing something. "How did all of those people get in today?"

Dumbledore nodded. "The Order has known about a possible attack tonight for a very long time. That's why I was in the forest, it's where they tend to hide. You think they'd learn. We didn't know if it would happen or not, but we made emergency portkeys. The Order got in by using them. The others.. Ah, it seems I need to explain a bit more. The ministry has received reports on these cloaked figures we see everywhere. They refer to each other as Death Eaters."

James shuddered. "Death Eaters?"

"Yes, but the ministry is still trying to figure out just who it is they're following." Dumbledore's blue eyes suddenly held rage. "Apparently their lord doesn't wish to be known until he is ready. Anyway, I assume they have spies in the school who set up portkeys for them, though as a headmaster it is not fair for me to accuse my students of being in league with these Death Eaters."

"I can name a few," Sirius snarled. "Snape, Malfoy, probably Malfoy's cronies, Rosier-"

"Thank you Sirius, that's enough," Dumbledore cut him off. James was still staring at Lily, who was trying to figure out what was going on.

"Anyway, Lyla was attacked all those years ago, and the very creatures she was taking care of protected her and gave her the power to defeat Slytherin's supporters. The glow you witnessed tonight would be an echo of their power. It's symbolic in a way, the light conquering the dark. The phoenixes had been sent in by Bryant himself, as he had a way with them. He sent them to protect her because he could not go to her himself; I believe he was being attacked by more of these evil wizards. They had been sent to kill him, along with his brother and father. The Gryffindors knew Slytherin wanted them gone. Bryant knew an attack would come. He sent the fire birds to protect her. The phoenixes gave Lyla the flight you also witnessed tonight, and alas, more symbolism: Good rising above evil."

There was a moment's silence. Dumbledore glanced at Lily, who was now sitting in James's lap rather than laying in it. She was frowning at the white dress she was still wearing- where had it come from? He then continued.

"Miss Evans, tonight you channeled the spirit of Lyla to a place where the miraculous happening took place again. You became her, in a way, to defeat those who came tonight. They were sent to kill James."

Lily gasped. "Why?"

"He is the last blood descendant of Godric Gryffindor. Slytherin's heir, whomever he is, knows it. Gryffindor's heir must come from him." Dumbledore paused and flicked his wand; four glasses of water appeared on his desk, and he passed them around. "You must be thirsty after such a night."

"But, how did the Order and Death Eaters know something would happen tonight?" James asked, still looking a bit shocked at the fact that he could have died tonight.

Dumbledore nodded again. "The Death Eaters didn't. They came, as I said, just to attack you. They were in the forest only to hide until they had the chance to attack. The Order has it's ways of finding things out. We knew the Death Eaters would attack, so we made the portkeys. We were also aware of the date. So many of us arrived because, if Lyla showed herself, if she appeared again in that spot after all of these years, we would finally know who the second prophet is. We would know who we've been looking for. We would know who's body holds her spirit. And now we know."

"The celebrations?" Sirius asked.

"Now that we know, Mr. Black, we know that Bryant's plan worked. We know that they've survived time and will create a hope for us to overcome evil. Not for always, as there has to be a balance of evil for there to be good. But we have hope to defeat Slytherin's heir."

"I'm so tired," Lily whispered.

"Professor," James said seriously. "If Lily turning into Lyla proved it was her, then how do we know for sure that I'm Bryant? I mean, why didn't I change?"

"Ahh, my favorite part," Dumbledore said with a grin. "We know that you are Bryant because Lily saved you."

James blinked at him.

"You don't see it?" the old man continued. "Ok, Lyla saved Bryant all those years ago when she came across Slytherin's followers in the forest. That's why he fell in love with her in the first place, and why this date is so significant. Anyway, you were in danger tonight. Now, of course none of us would have let anything happen to you- your parents were here, as well as most of the Order. But it was Lyla's love for Bryant, or Lily's love for you, that saved you. She came to the forest as Lyla and saved you, because she knew who you were. At least, Lyla did. She knew you were in danger._ Lyla_ knew _Bryant_ was in danger. Do you get it? There is no power greater than a woman's love. And if that isn't proof enough, I don't know what is."

They sat in silence for a few minutes, Lily still very confused. Finally Dumbledore stood.

"You must be tired. Now that you know what happened, I'll see you all to the hospital wing where you won't be disturbed."

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Confident that his students were sleeping peacefully, Albus Dumbledore made his way to his headmistress's office.

"Albus," She said, opening the door before he even got to it. "Now that we know, what do we do?"

"We wait," he said simply.

"Could the heir be one of them?" Her tartan nightgown rustled as she nervously fluttered about.

"Minerva," he said, giving her a look that said whatever he was about to say was to remain a secret. "I think those two will parent the heir."

"Parent? Albus, I don't understand."

"A baby, Minerva. No time soon!" he said, laughing at the look of horror on her face. "The witch in the portrait in your classroom has informed me that James wants to eventually ask Lily to marry him. We always said they would have to work together to produce the heir, what did we think, they would make it out of dough? There is no other explanation, Minerva."

"It's genius, really. Albus.. Did you erase their memories?"

"Ahh." He looked away from her now. "I know the Order decided it would be the best thing for them, to live life as normally as possible. But truthfully, there is nothing normal about the situation at all. And they deserve to know the truth."

"I agree, and if you remember, I've thought so all along. It was Cistibal's decision to erase their memories." She frowned and looked away as if she were biting her tongue. She didn't now or ever approve of Gus Cistibal.

"Cistibal certainly makes his opinions heard. Nonetheless, he is in the order, and I trust him."

"As you see it."

"Such a day," he murmured absently. "The Ides of March. A day of pain."

"It was the birth of Lyla," McGonagall whispered.

"Yes, but it was also the birth of a doomed love."

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**A/N: OKOKOK. I meant to make this chapter longer, but the things I left out will have to wait for the next chapter, because my reviewers weren't too pleased with the wait, hehe. As far as the story goes, there's only about 2-3 chapters left. I'm already planning a possible sequel. (Yeah, I know, I thought this was my last long story too, but.. I dunno.) So, there's your explanation. Now here's your shoutouts :0) (I'm only doing for this chapter)**

**OHH, and the7bells pointed out that I had turned off unsigned reviews.. Well, now I turned it back on, so if you were trying to leave an unsigned review before, now you can. Lol I forgot it was off. Thanks the7bells!**

**Flame Of Desire: hehe, thank you so much! You're so nice, I'm glad you like my fic. I get so tired of it sometimes, but getting reviews like that makes me want to keep writing. Thanks :0)**

**refallen: ZEEEE. Haha. Well, now you know what happens. I lurrrrve you **

**knoxjazzbabe: hehe sry about the scariness! Ah, now you know why James didn't come back too: she came back to save him. I love reading your reviews, they always make me want to update faster.. :0)**

**tucker529: (ok technically this review was for a different chapter but shh hehe) Thank you, as I said before, I love getting reviews like that. And I'll update asap :0)**

**Lorelei6: Aw Rae I'm sorry, haha. I luuurrrve you too. And hah, Friendly's, I thought u were fired!? Anyway, I would have jumped right into that conversation. Yeah, I love the randomness.. That chapter is the reason I even wrote this story- It's been written for soo long. Hmm, a little slash? Maybe I"ll put something discreet in, though, im sorry, it won't be a major storyline. Maybe I'll write something else with it. Thank you for being my wonder-BETA! You get a rose o)> -------- Thanks love :0)**

**Ideal Menagerie: Haha, sry about the ending! The Bitch is updated.. And almost done. Yeah, Rachael said she wanted sex/slash too. Haha. Luuuurrrve! :0)**

**the7bells: Ahh, thank you, I forgot I had turned unsigned reviews off. Oh, the7bells, where to start.. One of my favorite reviewers! I love reading your reviews. I mean, yes, you told me I was cruel, but then you compared me to JKR and told me I could be a marauder, so I luv you! Haha. See, I would have done Lily's POV, but Lily doesn't really know what happened. I think I might do the last chapter to Destined in POVs. Thanks for being a great reviewer, I hope you keep reading.. :0)**

**The ORIGINAL Meathead**: **Sam, I love your reviews. My life is random too.. So, now you know why James didn't turn into Bryant. I hope this chapter explained everything. I'm sorry for the suspense, hehe but now you know what happens next! Like I said, I love your reviews, they always make me want to update faster. I hope you keep reading :0)**

**Ok, those are just responses to chapter 18. If you guys want, or have any questions, I'll do that again in the next chapter. **

**A Special Thank You to my BETA, Rachael, and part-time BETAs, Zee and Sam. **

**o)>----------**

**o)>-------------**

**o)>--------flowers for my BETAs. :0) (the 'at' key didnt work for roses hehe)**

**Ok, see you all in chapter... 20.**

**-Ria**


	20. Every new beginning comes from some othe...

A rainy day, a warm fire, soft blankets and warm bodies.

This was how Lily Evans wanted to spend the rest of her life.

It didn't matter that she might have to die to save so many. It didn't matter that she'd be in danger. What mattered, right now, was that she was laying on a couch in the common room, in front of the fire, drinking stolen-from-the-kitchens hot chocolate with her best friends. What mattered was James's hand on the small of her back, reminding her that he was there, for always, for support and guidance. What mattered was the way Sirius barked out his laughter at every joke he and James made up, reminding her that Sirius would remain loyal to James, and even herself, until his dying day. Alli's legs sprawled across Lily's lap reminded her that sometimes, whatever God may be up there, he sends us angels through the form of a friend. Remus taught Lily to never stereotype anything, for even something considered a monster can be beautiful. Peter.. Well, Lily hadn't quite figured him out yet, but something told her to keep an eye on Peter.

Rain was softly falling outside. It was a Saturday, and a Hogsmeade weekend at that. The common room was empty and lit only by the fire. It had been a full week since Lyla Dubaer had reappeared, and the only thing Lily felt was contentment. Sweet, relaxing contentment.

"You look a lot better, Lily," Sirius said suddenly, adding "_If_ that's your real name," with a smart wink.

James threw a pillow at him. Lily just laughed and leaned back on him lazily.

"Yeah," she said, closing her eyes. "I feel a lot better. Though, certainly not from lack of teasing from my friends..." Sirius had been lovingly calling Lily Lyla all week.

"Stuff it, Black," Alli said in a muffled way; she was lying face-down on the opposite side of the couch from Lily and James, her blond hair falling over her face.

Lily lived for these days. N.E.W.T.'s were coming up, as well as an unknown future. Maybe these lazy Saturdays were just the calm before the storm. Maybe Lily's friends would change in the future. Maybe she would be put in danger working with the Order.

All she knew was, whatever the future brought for her, as long as she was being comfortably smothered by the ones that she loved, she was ready for it.


	21. Epilogue, and the Final Author's Note

**Epilogue:**

Lily and James married less than a year later. Sirius Black, still James's best friend, stood in as the Best Man. Remus Lupin gave Lily away, since her father was still absent from her life. At the age of twenty, Lily gave birth to their son, Harry James Potter, and the long-awaited heir of Gryffindor. That, however, is another story, and not my story to write.

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**The Final Author's Note:**

Ok, hello everybody.. By now you have finished reading my fic, **Destined**. Yes, I know it's far-fetched, but I liked the idea and so,** Destined **was born. There are a few things in this story that I know are false (For instance, I know Lily's dad didn't leave them because Petunia goes on about how their "parents" - plural- were so proud of Lily. I added that anyway because I thought it would be a pretty good reason for why Lily was so resistant to fall in love.), but I also added some things in there that I think might be true.

For instance, I think Harry is Gryffindor's heir. I also think that the fact that they lived in Godric's Hollow is no coincidences. JKR doesn't have coincidences, besides that whole Mark Evans mess, but we won't talk about that. So if you read the final two Harry Potter books and see some things that might have been in **Destined**, think of me ;0).

Thank you for putting up with me for so long!!! Keep an eye out for more Lily/James stories coming from me soon. If (and that's a big If) I write another _long_ L/J, it will be normal, with no destiny crap or anything like that. I've grown really fond of One-shots, so I'll probably have a lot of them. And song-fics are fun. Ah, my writing agenda is flexible at the moment, though I have some big plans.

I've really loved and looked forward to your reviews, and each and every on of you are wonderful. Like I said, thank you for putting up with me! It's flattering that anybody, let alone all of you, would want to read my crap. Haha.

I'm already making plans for a sequel to this story, after the Marauders graduate. I'm not sure about it yet, but it'll definitely have more of Alli in it, as she's my favorite character. Ahh, I really don't want to end this story! - I'll miss the reviews- but it's over. On to the next story!

So, I'm saying the final Goodbye in Destined, and I'll (hopefully) see you in my next story!

Lots of love,

-Ria


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